Monday, March 31, 2014

HOWL AT THE MOON — Chapter 1 LITTLE CREEK

Hidden away in the coastal range of the Santa Cruz Mountains some twenty miles inland from the Big Water lies Coyote Valley. In the heart of Coyote Valley stands the town of Little Creek. Mayor Tom founded this site in the hopes of establishing a better foothold for American Democracy to take root in the heart of the new Republic. Although Alta California was included in the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848, much of the land was still controlled by the native Mexican population and was distributed under Land Grants.

When Mayor Tom established Little Creek he turned to his friend Bad Eye Bobolu and asked him to be the sheriff. Little Creek started with nothing more than a saloon and sheriff's office, both run by Bad Eye Bobolu. The town folk were mostly farmers and ranchers, good, hard working people who would lend a hand to anyone in need. The town was growing and with the addition of a school and church, families were steadily moving in and settling the Valley. Not more than a year after the town was established gold was discovered just downstream from Main Street. The discovery of gold can never be suppressed even in the remote area of Coyote Valley. All too soon Little Creek was showing up on hand scratched maps and before anyone knew it, the Stage Coach was coming to town regularly. As the word of gold traveled, the town flooded with miners and treasure seekers of all kinds who had simply grabbed a shovel and headed out to strike their claim. Only small amounts of color trickled out of a handful of holes dug by these desperate men. It didn't matter much though; all it takes is a little color anywhere to keep people coming. These would-be miners came with their heads filled with dreams of riches and visions of easy money. Some stuck it out but most grew discouraged quickly and abandoned these dreams of gold after just a short time of digging. Once spring passes the rains stop and most creeks dry up and all there is left to do is hard pan until late fall when rain might fall again. Many of those who keep mining through the summer find themselves with bloody knuckles and finger tips.

One of the early residents of Little Creek was a man who went by the name of Coyote Mann, at least that is what everyone called him since he wore a coyote skin on his head. He and his wife were descendants of the Chippewa Indian from the Sault Ste Mare Tribe in Upper Michigan. Coyote Mann was a trapper and learned to work with iron by making his own traps. His skills with a hammer and anvil became more valuable than the pelts he could trap so he eventually turned to blacksmithing for a living but continued to trap for food and furs. To escape the cold winters of Michigan, Coyote Mann headed out west where skilled craftsmen were needed to help tame and settle the west. A growing town is a good place for a blacksmith. As people build their homes and businesses they need hardware for building. Coyote Mann could take a simple piece of iron and with a little heat from his coal fired forge and the pounding of his hammer he could work magic. He happened upon the Valley of the Coyotes while hunting to feed his family. He learned quickly where the best places to hunt were to find game for food and fur bearers for trapping. When he discovered the town of Little Creek in that rich, beautiful valley he moved his family there and set himself up a makeshift shop under an oak tree at the end of town and has never left since.

RW Sloan was a long time friend of Bad Eye and a man with good business sense. Knowing he would bring only good things with him, Bad Eye could not wait to tell RW of the new town he and Mayor Tom were establishing. Once gold was discovered, Little Creek needed a bank and RW Sloan was just the man to put one in. He was a self made man with a bit of financial means. This is not to say RW Sloan was loaded but he had just enough backing to get a bank going. The first step was for RW Sloan to purchase a lot to build the bank on. He knew the Bank had to be in the middle of town on Main Street to be successful and he had his eye on the lot right next to the saloon. This was really the only vacant lot left on Main Street but was owned by Harlan Applebee. Harlan had given mining a try but had not struck gold and was none too happy about it. He had secured the Main Street lot with the hopes of opening a hardware store with all the money he was going to have from mining but now Harlan Applebee wanted nothing more than to sell the lots and say good bye and good riddance to Little Creek. With the town now bustling with gold seekers, Main Street dirt commanded a handsome price. Harlan figured if he couldn't make his money from gold he would get it for the lots so the only deal RW Sloan could strike with Harlan was to purchase the lot he wanted and the adjoining lot behind it. The additional lot really had no value because it was not on Main Street but Harlan Applebee wanted full value price for both. RW Sloan was stuck between a rock and a hard place and was forced into buying both at full price. The deal took more of RW's funds than he had anticipated and he was now concerned about having what it would take to complete the bank. RW Sloan was a tenacious businessman though, and when he started something he finished it.

Now that the land for the bank was acquired, RW Sloan approached El Vaquero to build the bank building for him. He explained the financial situation he was in and hoped for the best. El Vaquero could see the bind RW had gotten himself into and felt the need to help. RW may have been a good, or even a great businessman but he knew nothing about construction. El Vaquero explained to RW that constructing a building was a little more involved than just tacking up a few boards. A bank needs to be a secure building with bars on the teller window and a safe. But before any of this could happen a foundation would need to be dug and drainage established. RW Sloan went to the Mayor the next day and explained his situation and requested a town meeting. The town founders came together in the saloon and together came up with a plan. El Vaquero and Jose would take care of the foundation and the building itself and Coyote Mann would get to work on the required iron for bars and most of all, the safe.

The idea of building the safe excited Coyote Mann. He had never taken on a project as big as building a bank safe. He literally moved his blacksmithing equipment to the lot behind the bank and went to work. Coyote Mann, El Vaquero and Jose all knew RW Sloan would not be able to pay them what their work was worth but they knew the town needed a bank if it were to keep growing and lending a hand to someone with good intentions who needed it was really what Little Creek was built on. When the work on the bank was complete, RW Sloan met with the men to discuss payment. Since Coyote Mann had moved all his equipment to the lot behind the bank and he looked pretty comfortable there, RW offered the land to him as partial payment. Land off of Main Street in Little Creek carried little value but Coyote Mann was a fair man and he could see the town was growing so he took the lot on the speculation it would have good value one day.

With the bank complete, Coyote Mann moved his blacksmithing tools back under the oak at the end of town and resumed life as it was before the excitement of building the bank. He had been busy all day every day while the bank was under construction but now had time on his hands and little work to keep himself busy. With all the talk in town of gold, Coyote Mann caught a little bit of the gold fever and he started digging a mine behind the bank. After all, he owned the lot and had nothing else to do with it right now. He pounded a stick into the ground in front of his mine and nailed a sign to the stick that said "Coyote Den Mine." He had not dug more than twenty feet into the hillside when he hit pay dirt. It started as just a little color in the bottom of his pan but the further in he got, the larger the vein became. Coyote Mann was not a drinker so while the rest of the men in the town headed to the saloon in the evening to drink, Coyote Mann would head into his mine shaft. He continued to be a blacksmith by day and a miner by night. When anyone would ask him how the mine was treating him, he would just grumble and shake his head. Everyone was so used to seeing useless holes that they figured he was about as successful as everyone else at mining. Within a couple of months of mining at night, Coyote Mann filled a small pouch with gold dust. Not wanting anyone to know about his big find, he quietly met with the RW Sloan and arranged for the gold to be stored in the bank's vault. This would even out any debt RW Sloan owed to Coyote Mann and gave him a safe place to keep the gold. As he pulled more and more gold from the hillside, Coyote Mann was glad he had built the safe so well.

To be continued. . .

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