Gasquet Ranch

From WesternStarWiki

It is written that Saschel Woods, the first Master of Western Star Lodge No. 2 "located on the Gasquet Ranch at the forks of Smith's River"^[1] on his return to California. It's currently uncertain what exactly the Gasquet Ranch was.

An Internet search returns the town of Gasquet near the forks of the Smith River. Here, the story becomes somewhat muddled. Gasquet was founded by a Frenchman named Horace Gasquet in the 1850s. The Gasquet settlement was also known as Gasquet Flat, Gasquet Village, and Gasquet Resort. "Gasquet Village [a business ran by Horace Gasquet] became a well-known health spa that drew many patrons who visited on a regular basis" ^[2].

Different sources cites various dates for the founding of Gasquet: 1852 ^[3],1853 ^[4][5], and 1857^[2]. One source even claims he did not arrive in America until 1853^[2]; the same source quotes claims Gasquet did not arrive in Crescent City until 1855, a year after Saschel Woods died.

This poses several questions: Which date for the founding of Gasquet is correct? Is it the same location mentioned as one of the final residences of Saschel Woods? Is it possible a later historian described the locale as Gasquet Ranch after the fact? Until more primary sources can be located, we cannot know for certain.

Assuming the earliest date of 1852 is correct, it is not beyond the realm of possibility that Saschel Woods travelled to Gasquet to recover. It is not known if Woods intended to travel inland to rejoin the brethren of Western Star Lodge No. 2 upon his recovery. Unless a diary or correspondence is discovered, we will likely never know.

References

1. ↑ Whitsell, Leon O. (Ed.) (1950). One Hundred Years of Freemasonry in California. San Francisco: Grand Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons of California.
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2} del Norte Country Historical Society (2006). In Crescent City and Del Norte County. San Francisco: Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 0738530751. Google Book Search. Retrieved on August 28, 2008.
3. ↑ California North Coast Visitors Bureau. Cities, Towns, Villages, & Areas In... The Redwood Empire Redwood Empire Association. Archived from the original on 2008-08-28.
4. ↑ Austin, Linda Gong (2000). In Mountain Bike! Northern California. Birmingham: Menasha Ridge Press. ISBN 0897322886. Google Book Search. Retrieved on August 28, 2008.
5. ↑ Wetherell, Harry and Vernadine. Where Is Gasquet?. Gasquet Mobile Home Park. Archived from the original on 2008-08-28.