The seond team was headed by Orville G. Herning. His men were Edward Kirkpatrick, George H. Brown, Fred M. Young, William H. Thorne, George F. Butler, George F. Burrows, Michael Dineen, H. P. Daniels and Daniel Coleman.
When Herning and his
team finally made it to the Willow Creek area, they found five men had
already established placer claims: L. H. Herndon, Billy Morris, ____ Brainard,
_____ E'Van and Capt. Andrews.
Those five men, along
with Herning and his team had a formal meeting to establish the Willow
Creek Mining District organization and L. H. Herndon was appointed Recorder.
While these earliest claims were placer claims, a man named Robert L. Hatcher filed the first lode claim in the Willow Creek Mining District in 1906. A year later, William Bartholf, from Colorado, staked the Gold Bullion Mine on Craigie Creek; more Bartholf family members soon joined him. Although most historical records refer to the Bartholf's collectively, as "The Bartholf Brothers", in reality, it should have been "The Bartholf brothers and sons". This is my attempt to untangle their family tree.
I start this family tree with the oldest Willow Creek Bartholf brother, Byron Sandlon Bartholf, born 5/1/1850 in Batavia, Genesee County, New York. His parents were John Debow Bartholf and Sarah Jane (Barrett) Bartholf. His grandparents were Guiliaem Bartholf and Jane Debow Bartholf of Batavia, New York.
JOHN DEBOW BARTHOLF
born 1922 Batavia, New York (FATHER)
SARAH JANE BARRETT
born 1824 (MOTHER)
THEIR CHILDREN:
1. JANE M. (or
Jennie) BARTHOLF born 1842 -- 1925 (husband Erastus Emery Eastman)
2. FRANK GUILIAEM
BARTHOLF 1846 -- 1923 died in Colorado (wife Maryette Hildreth)
Had a son named Harvey J. Bartholf born 1868 Colorado
Had daughter named Ella Bartholf born 1870 Colorado
Had son named Frank Bartholf born 1873 Colorado
Had son named Carl Bartholf born 1875 Colorado
Had son named Mark Bartholf born 1877 Colorado
Bought lot 2 block 115 & lot 1 block 77 Anchorage Townsite in 1921
& 1922
3. CAROLINE BARTHOLF born 1847 --(daughter)
4. BYRON SUNDLON BARTHOLF 1850 -- 1939 (see info below)
5. KITTY BARTHOLF
1851
-- (husband John Henry Finley) at least one son, named John
born 1879
Bought lot 7 block 44 Anchorage Townsite in 1921
6. JOHN DEBOW BARTHOLF
1854 --
7. WILLIAM EARL
BARTHOLF 1857 -- (wife Eva)
Had a daughter named Kitty Bartholf born 1887
Had a daughter named Pearl Bartholf born 1891
Had a son named Dorr Bartholf born 1896
8. EUGENE H. BARTHOLF 1859 --
Byron Sundlon Bartholf (the oldest Bartholf brother) was born 1850 in Batavia, New York. He died in 1939 in Klamath Falls, Oregon. He had two wives and four sons. It is my understanding that all four sons worked in the Willow Creek District at one time.
Liddie Church was Byron Sundlon Bartholfs first wife and the mother for his first three sons:
JOHN TYLOR BARTHOLF
born 12/18/1875 in Colorado died 1945 California
(wife Leora Lola Smith - had a son named Chester Earl Bartholf b. 1901)
Chester & wife Nellie had
1 son Dwain born 1926
1 daughter Jean M. born 1929
WILLIAM BYRON
BARTHOLF born 4/31/1876 Colorado died
8/22/1921 (wife Marie)
(leg cut off in accident at Lucky Shot Mine Willow Creek District, bled
to death 1921).
CHARLES ANDREW
BARTHOLF born 7/4/1878 Colorado
(wife Eva) had a sons named
Clarence Bartholf born 1900 Washington
Richard Bartholf born 1915 Alaska
Stanley Bartholf born 1918 Alaska
Registered for WW II draft in 1942 at the age of 63
he was living in Lakeport, California
I don't believe that the mother of these sons lived too long, because Byron S. Bartholf is shown as a single father of boys age 10, 9 & 8 as early as 1885. His second wife was Amelia Amanda Hohanshelt Smith; she was the mother of Bartholf's fourth son:
RALPH SUNDLON
BARTHOLF born 1900 in Yakima, Washington.
Ralph registered for the WW I
Draft in Anchorage in 1918. His wife's name was Mary Kauzlarich.
They had 2 sons, Byron L. Bartholf 1926-2002 and Ralph Bartholf
Jr. born 1928.
If you would like to
use my research,
kindly attach my name
to it: Coleen Mielke Wasilla, Alaska
If you would like to reach me: coleen@mtaonline.net
KEEP IN MIND THAT MOST
OF THESE DATES ARE "CALCULATED DATES" WHICH
MEANS THEY WERE TAKEN
FROM DOCUMENTS THAT ONLY STATED A YEAR
(NOT A day/month/year)
THEREFORE, THE ACTUAL DATE MAY VARY A YEAR ONE WAY OR THE OTHER.
THE DATES THAT ARE COMPLETE day/month/year ARE ACTUAL
DATES TAKEN FROM DOCUMENTS
AND SHOULD BE ACCURATE.