From time to time, we dip into the 19th century for a story with 20- or 21st-century ties. At the recent Nevada City Chamber of Commerce Awards night at the Miners Foundry, the name of the late Bob Paine was bantered about. It got me thinking that Bob loved to brag (when did he not?) that he held the distinction of being the only commodore of the only inland yacht club without either a yacht or a body of water upon which to sail! Bob liked to joke that the honor was "hereditarial." His grandfather, Philander A. Paine, was the proprietor of Lake City's Paine Hotel and the first commodore of the yacht club. We'll devote a future column to Bob, as a public servant, his accomplishments and his times. But now, Lake City's place in our history.
Nevada County has achieved distinction by scoring many notable "firsts." In the field of gold mining technology, in hydroelectric power generation and in long distance voice transmission, the county stands tall. Perhaps the most unique and little known "firsts" came not in industry, but in sports. We have previously related how the first horse race under the lights was performed on the track at the old Glenbrook Fairgrounds in 1887.Fourteen miles east of Nevada City on the North Bloomfield-Graniteville Road is a wide spot bordering Malakoff Diggins State Historic Park that is the site of the long-gone burg of Lake City. The town was established in 1857, as a switching point for "ditch water" sent to the various hydraulic mining operations along the San Juan Ridge through a system of open canals or ditches. Lake City prospered for some 30 years. It boasted two hotels, three saloons, a general store, tailor shop, a schoolhouse and other "metropolitan refinements." In 1877, so the story is related, the Lake City yacht Club was formed, with Philander A. Paine as commodore. It was claimed to be the first inland yacht club west of the Mississippi and the only one ever formed in the California Gold Rush country.
Lake City was ideally suited for such an honor or distinction or bragging rights. A large manmade lake had been created by the Eureka Lake Co. to impound water for its mining operations. Now, excellent wind conditions and a citizenry imbued with a competitive sprit made the club an instant success.
In addition to his hotel, Paine was a rancher and ran a number of head of cattle on his adjoining spread. His interest in boats, his grandson related, stemmed from Philander's youth as an ordinary seaman sailing before the mast on one of his English father's merchantmen engaged in the East India trade. Captain Edward Paine wanted his son to follow the sea and become a sea captain, but the lure of gold in California was too strong and he eventually found his way to Nevada County via Ohio.
The yacht club prospered despite the lack of outside competition and held frequent regattas at which time the entire town showed up to cheer their favorite boat. Individual teams called "red," "white" and "blue," were formed within the yacht club and battled for the coveted annual title of "Hydra King."
Lake City, 1880. Note the sail boat on Eureka Lake. Author's collection.
No photographs are known to exist of any of the sailing or rowing events at Lake City; however, a sketch of the town appears in "A History of Nevada County, California- 1880," by Harry L. Wells, published by Thompson & West, Oakland, California. The sketch shows a single sail boat on Eureka Lake. It is reproduced here as part of this presentation.
Re-routing of water ditches, coupled with increased storage facilities higher up in the mountains, spelled the end for Lake City. The decline began in 1883, and today nothing physical remains to inform a visitor of the town's onetime glory and the title of Queen of the Inland Yacht Clubs. A wooden marker relates some of Lake City's past but does not mention the yacht club, an oversight which Bob would have abhorred.Bob Wyckoff is a retired Nevada County newspaper editor/publisher and author of local history publications which are available at your favorite local bookstore. You may contact him at: bobwyckoff@sbcglobal.net or PO Box 216, Nevada City CA 95959.
