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Scheduled Speakers January 9th, 2010 Charles Moore Hackley ______________________________________________________________________ December 2009 Speaker   Dan Rodriguez Pahrump Valley Chamber of Commerce director spoke on authoring books, business experiences and the local chamber. November 2009 Speaker  Local historian and Pahrump Mirror columnist John Weisser spoke about woman prospectors from the Nevada gold and silver mining era. January 2009 Speaker  Speaker: Brian Brown, China Ranch Date Farm BRIAN BROWN, owner of the unique oasis called the China Ranch Date Farm, addressed the Friends of the Library at their January meeting. His presentation answered the question most frequently asked: Why is his date orchard called The China Ranch? Brian has searched many resources looking for that answer. “Loafing Along Death Valley Trails,” a 1950 publication by Mr. Caruthers, and the Inyo County records were especially informative. In 1882, The Pacific Coast Borax Company recruited Chinese workers to mine the abundant borax crystal found in Death Valley. (Remember the old radio show, Death Valley Days, advertising the 20-mule team borax products?) Because of the intense summer heat in Death Valley, the Company would transfer their workers to another borax mine about seven miles from the present Date Farm. A Chinese man named Ah-foo was sent to a “ranch in the region” to grow vegetables for the workers. Presumably, this ranch was the present Date Farm where there was plenty of water and good soil. Inyo County records verify two references to Ah-foo: a 1895 court action, and a 1900 quit-claim deed to Misters Morrison and Walsh, who bought the “Chinaman’s Ranch” for $1,000 in gold. From 1919 to 1925 Brian’s great aunt owned the ranch and built a home there. She ordered generic date seeds by mail, which she then planted along the drive-way up to the house. The trees, planted in 1920, still line the drive, towering over the other, younger trees in the orchard. (Dates from the original trees, called the China Ranch Variety, are still harvested.) In 1969, Brian’s father bought an interest in the ranch. Since 1990, Brian and his wife have worked to enhance the orchard with specific varieties of dates, and build the business. In recent years, Brian came to an agreement with the Nature Conservancy to designate a portion of the acreage for further development of the orchard, but dedicate the larger surrounding area in perpetuity to conservation, thus preventing residential development. The China Ranch Oasis, with its flowing creek, will always be there for future generations to enjoy. October 2008 Speaker  Local history teacher Bob Mobley, spoke about the Comstock Lode and silver mining in Virginia City, Nevada. September 2008- author Gail Martin  Multi-award-winning author Gail Martin, writer of romance and romantic suspense for Christian readers, gave a most interesting presentation, focusing on the journey that led her to writing, rather than on any of her 40 published novels. Ms. Martin became a recognized author only after she retired from her earlier profession. Become acquainted with this inspiring author at: www.gailmartin.com . As always, the Friends purchased one of Ms. Martin’s books for the Pahrump Library collection. June 2008 - Julie Moreo  Julie Moreo autugraphs her book You Are More Than Enough: Every Woman's Guide to Purpose, Passion, and Power for member Helene Campton. May 2008 - Geoff Schumacher  At the May 3rd Friends of the Library meeting, guest speaker, Geoff Schumacher autographed his book, Howard Hughes: Power, Paranoia & Palace Intrigue for member Nancy Suter. April 2008 - Ronald Wayne  Ronald Wayne talked about the value of money |
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