1860 – 1869

Prior to the gold rush of the 1860’s, Native Americans camped in Round Valley to hunt and to dig and dry camas roots. Packer John Welch, who had contracted to freight supplies from Umatilla Landing on the Columbia River to miners of Idaho City, established a camp on Gold Fork Creek and a brush cabin on Clear Creek in the 1860’s. He also established a station near what later became the town of Cascade.

1870 – 1879

During the 1870’s, prospectors and miners followed in Packer John’s footsteps to scour the valley and surrounding mountains for gold. The Clara Foltz mines opened on Paddy Flat, and other diggings commenced on Boulder and Gold Fork Creeks. Also during the 1870’s, two salmon fisheries operated seasonally on Payette Lake.

In the late 1870’s, the last of the Sheepeater Tribe was removed from Long Valley and Round Valley to a reservation. As the gold sources dwindled, a few of the miners took up squatter’s rights. James Horner built a cabin on Clear Creek in 1881. Other miners settled on the Payette River. In 1883, S.M. Sisk, a young miner from New York, settled near the old town site of Crawford. Later the same year, L.S. Kimble came from Illinois and began to cut trees at Tamarack Falls. A year later he moved to the site of VanWyck and opened the region’s first blacksmith shop. After Kimble came W.D. Patterson, T.L. Worthington, L.M. Gorton, John DeHaas, E.A. Smith and many others who contributed to the development around VanWyck, Crawford and Alpha.

1880 – 1889

In the 1880’s, a man named Maxey came to Round Valley to fatten hogs on the camas roots. Caroline Jarvis bought his homestead in 1888. Then in 1892, W.A. “Billy” Bacon, who came to Boise in 1863, married Sarah Jarvis and built a log cabin to begin his homestead in Round Valley.

In 1886, Jack Jasper established a homestead near what is now Roseberry. He estimated then that there were about thirty families in the valley. The Mark Cole and Blankenship families arrived in 1888 and, with Jack Jasper and the Pottengers, founded Roseberry. Also in 1888, the first post offices in Valley County were opened at VanWyck, on March 14, with L. Kimble as postmaster; and, at Alpha, on July 12, with James Horner as postmaster.

In 1889, Louis McCall took squatter’s rights on Payette Lake. Other settlers in the area were the Yorkes, Albert Gaekel, Louis Heacock and Arthur Rowland. Their homesteads were the nucleus of what would later become the town of McCall.

A post office opened at Lardo in 1889 with John Lane as postmaster. Also, W.H. Boydstun established a freight stop at Lardo to service the increased mining activity at Warren Meadows.  READ MORE