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.