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Articles by Steve Cottrell
Ideas & Opinions — Steve Cottrell: Understanding the past, planning for the future
(The following was distributed to all Nevada City councilmembers, planning commissioners and planning staff). Honorable City Council and Planning Commission: I was contacted recently by an author who is writing the biography of a woman who spent the last several years of her life in Grass Valley. He is a retired history teacher who believes it is incumbent upon decision-makers to understand the past in order to deal with the present and plan for the future. And I agree with him.
Ideas & Opinions - Steve Cottrell: Questions for the Nevada City Council
I’ve heard rumors that an earthquake rattled and shook Nevada City a few days ago, but it turned out to be former city manager Beryl P. Robinson, Jr. turning over in his grave at the news that Sean Grayson has ended his two and a half years as city manager by receiving more than $200,000 in severance pay, (not counting, perhaps, unpaid vacation days and unpaid sick days).
Echoes From Our Past: Steve Cottrell - It's been a fun ride and great privilege
It has been a privilege to have Page One space once a month to share Nevada County history with you, not to mention several articles published earlier in the Nevada City News and Nevada City Advocate. In all, I’ve written more than 200 history pieces in 17 years. But the time has come to step down. Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription to continue reading. That said, Parkinson’s Disease has taken its toll.
Echoes From Our Past - Steve Cottrell: The day Schuyler Colfax visited Nevada County
In our previous history article we explained how it happened that three Nevada County pioneers were among the final people to talk to Abraham Lincoln before the president and first lady left the grounds of the White House, bound for Ford’s Theater on the evening of April 14, 1865.
Ideas & Opinions - Steve Cottrell: Yes, Sargent authored the 19th Amendment
I was surprised to read the February 22 comments by Jan-Michelle Sawyer claiming Aaron Sargent did not author the final version of the 19th Amendment as adopted by Congress in 1919.
Echoes From Our Past - Steve Cottrell: Pete Daley: Grass Valley native was a big leaguer
The 2025 Major League Baseball season is on the horizon and I am once again looking forward to a Boston Red Sox-San Francisco Giants World Series. (They last met in a World Series in 1912, the first year Fenway Park was home to the Sox). Although some Las Vegas oddsmakers currently have Boston 15-1 to win the American League pennant and San Francisco 25-1 to win the National League title, I will continue to dream.
Echoes From Our Past - Steve Cottrell: Elza Kilroy, the orphan who became 'Mr. Nevada City'
When I moved to Nevada City in the summer of 1977, my first job was night bartender at the National Hotel. In those days the hotel bar was the social hub of the town and gave me an opportunity to quickly meet dozens of longtime residents: Bob and Ruth Paine, Doc and Sally Lewis, Vin and Joan Agar, Dick and Bev Hackett, Dave and Sharon Tobiassen, and so many others, including Elza and Luvia Kilroy, who had married in 1919.
Echoes From Our Past - Steve Cottrell: Lucius Fairchild became governor of Wisconsin
Beginning in 1848 and continuing throughout the Gold Rush, tens of thousands of hopeful argonauts made their way to California in search of riches, and many came to Nevada County. Although very few actually became wealthy, and many returned home with little to show for their labor except thick calluses, they were part of a great adventure that helped shape the future of the American West. One such pathfinder was Lucius Fairchild.
Echoes From Our Past - Steve Cottrell: Lawman Stephen Venard refused $3,000 reward
Dozens of books and movies — some based on facts, some on fantasy — have chronicled the adventures of Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson, Bass Reeves and other 19th century lawmen who were never bashful about promoting themselves. But this is the story of a less flamboyant lawman of the Old West — one who quietly made his home in Nevada City.
Echoes From Our Past: John Rollin Ridge, Native American literary icon
Nevada County’s active roster of literary figures is impressive: poets Gary Snyder and Molly Fisk, nature writer Jordan Fisher Smith, historian Gage McKinney, author/playwright Sands Hall, political cartoonist/social commentator R. L. Crabb come to mind. And there are many, many more.
Echoes From Our Past: Charles Kent's death - A suicide or a murder?
Twenty-year-old Charles Kent arrived in Nevada City from Pennsylvania in the fall of 1854 and soon became a prominent butcher — most notably as owner of the Keystone Market on Commercial Street. In addition, he owned a slaughterhouse, barn and stables above Washington Street in the general area of present-day Uren Street and Highway 20/49 intersection.
Echoes From Our Past: Is it Nevada City or City of Nevada?
During recent public meetings leading up to the Nevada City Council’s decision to pay themselves and future councilmembers $500 a month, reference was made several times to the town having been incorporated in 1856 –– an oft-repeated misstatement of local history that needs clarification.
Echoes From Our Past - Steve Cottrell: Nevada City native became prominent neurosurgeon
Shortly after noon on July 10, 1937, a California Highway Patrol officer arrived at Dr. Howard Naffziger’s Lake Tahoe summer cabin with an urgent message from Dr. Carl Rand, a neurosurgeon at Cedars of Lebanon Hospital in Los Angeles: A 38-year-old VIP patient was in critical condition and Dr. Rand needed Dr. Naffziger’s experience and steady hand to help perform a delicate operation.
Echoes from our past - Steve Cottrell: Stephen Field and the 1877 Electoral Commission
Before the Bush v. Gore hanging chads of 2000 and charges of a stolen election by Donald Trump in 2020, there was the presidential election of 1876 with Democrat Samuel J. Tilden and Republican Rutherford B. Hayes both claiming victory. Post-election accusations included voter intimidation and suppression, illegal state electors, stuffed ballot boxes, arbitrary voter disqualifications, and other irregularities that led to creation of the 1877 Electoral Commission.
Echoes from our past: Jo V. Snyder: Native son, newspaperman, politician
Joseph Victor Snyder was born and raised in Grass Valley, lived his adult life in Nevada City, married Nevada County native Minerva Reynolds in 1898, and was a man who wore many hats.
Echoes From Our Past: Recalling the life of Editor Henry Shipley
An oft-told story about Lola Montez involves an appearance she made at the Golden Gate Saloon on Main Street in Grass Valley in November 1854 –– horsewhip in her hand –– to confront Grass Valley Telegraph newspaper editor Henry Shipley, who had written an article Lola found offensive. She was angry and determined to express her anger.
Echoes From Our Past - Steve Cottrell: New book is reminder of local aviation pioneers
Beginning with the Nevada City-Washington route in the 1860s, the Gissel line eventually covered much of the county west of Donner Summit. Then, in 1909, the brothers took the bold step of replacing a horse-drawn stage with a horseless carriage for their most challenging route: Nevada City-Downieville –– a tortuous trip for both the vehicle and driver. And for that job they hired Eugene Ely, a professional driver and mechanic then living in San Francisco.
Echoes From Our Past - Steve Cottrell: Grass Valley: ‘cradle of the women’s temperance movement’
Special to The Union If a Nevada County Hall of Fame is ever established, a likely charter inductee will be Dorcas James (Barber) Spencer –– a woman who spent her adult life committed to the cause of temperance, Native American rights, public education, and other social issues. Born and raised in Rhode Island, 17-year-old Dorcas Barber arrived in Grass Valley in 1858 and soon married 35-year-old William Spencer, who owned a Main Street stationery and bookstore.
Echoes From Our Past - Steve Cottrell: Nevada County’s link with 14th amendment brouhaha
Special to The Union William Morris Stewart, a prominent figure in Nevada County’s early history, was also a key player in the debate that led to the 14th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. Considering all the attention being focused on the 14th Amendment these days –– particularly Section 3 –– let’s take a look back at Stewart’s involvement.
Cottrell: 50th birthday of Endangered Species Act celebrated, keeping red knots in mind - Bay to Bay News
Posted Friday, September 29, 2023 12:58 pm In the face of this stalemate in Delaware, an approach to consider is to simply buy the crabbers out. Congress can help by allocating federal Endangered Species Act funding for this red knot recovery effort.” Steve Cottrell is the president of Delaware Audubon. Wildlife advocates from Delaware joined colleagues from Maine to Hawaii in the nation’s capital Sept. 12-13 to mark the 50th anniversary of the Endangered Species Act.
Cottrell: 50th birthday of Endangered Species Act celebrated, keeping red knots in mind - Bay to Bay News
Posted Friday, September 29, 2023 12:58 pm In the face of this stalemate in Delaware, an approach to consider is to simply buy the crabbers out. Congress can help by allocating federal Endangered Species Act funding for this red knot recovery effort.” Steve Cottrell is the president of Delaware Audubon. Wildlife advocates from Delaware joined colleagues from Maine to Hawaii in the nation’s capital Sept. 12-13 to mark the 50th anniversary of the Endangered Species Act.
Echoes from our past - Steve Cottrell: Thomas Porter Hawley: From Gold Miner to federal judge
Echoes from our past Nevada County had several distinguished district attorneys in the 19th century, some of whom later served on the California State Supreme Court and others who ascended to high political office, including the United States Senate. Among those early jurists was Thomas Porter Hawley, originally from Indiana, who served as district attorney here during the Civil War. Hawley, then 23, arrived in Nevada County in the summer of 1853.
Echoes from our past - Steve Cottrell: Camp Beale opened in summer of 1942
In the spring of 1941, as the United States prepared for entry into what would become World War II, plans were announced for establishment of an Army base straddling Nevada and Yuba counties. It would be called Camp Beale, (renamed Beale AFB in 1948), honoring Edward Fitzgerald Beale, a former general, diplomat, explorer, rancher, and California’s first Superintendent of Indian Affairs.
Ideas & Opinions — Steve Cottrell: Diane Dyer will be missed
In Nevada City these past several decades, some couples have become known community-wide by their first names only, usually spoken together: Vin and Joan (Agar), Dick and Bev (Hackett), Lee and Sally (Lewis), Dave and Sharon (Tobiassen), Bob and Ruth (Paine) come to mind, as do David and Charles. It’s as if their combined first names were actually one word: Vinandjoan, Dickandbev, Leeandsally, Daveandsharon, Bobandruth, Davidandcharles. They melded together to form single, amazing personalities.
Echoes From Our Past: The evolution of bicycle race sponsorship
Echoes from our past As The Union recently reported, due to inadequate sponsorship the Father’s Day bicycle races were not held this year. When it began in 1961 as the Tour of Nevada City, sponsorship was not a major issue; local businesses and regional companies provided financial support, and prize money was a few hundred dollars.
Echoes From Our Past: Recalling Grass Valley pioneer Edwin Maslin
Special to The Union When Edwin Maslin addressed the crowd at Grass Valley’s 1905 Independence Day celebration, he began by saying, “One day in May 1853, a stage rolled down Main Street and deposited a boy, nineteen years of age –– your speaker –– in front of the hotel where now stands the present Holbrooke Hotel.” Maslin, a native of Maryland, was the July 4th Orator of the Day.
Echoes From Our Past - Steve Cottrell: Harry Englebright, California’s first whip
In the hierarchy of Washington, D. C. politics, one of the most powerful positions in the House of Representatives is the whip. Next to Speaker of the House for the majority party, and Minority Leader for the minority party, the two whips are often key to the success or failure of pending legislation. As the name suggests, whips are charged with making sure members of their respective parties work together to support a shared agenda.
Echoes From Our Past - Steve Cottrell: Edward Spence and Dodger Stadium: A story of politics and baseball
Special to The Union In June 1858, Edward Spence acquired a drugstore at what today is 130 Main St. in Nevada City, current home of Harmony Books. A century later – June 1958 – Los Angeles voters narrowly approved a referendum allowing the transplanted Brooklyn Dodgers to construct a stadium and parking lot on city-owned property. As we await baseball’s Opening Day next week, let’s take a look at the connection between Edward Spence and Dodger Stadium.
Echoes from our past: Looking back at California tomorrow
The eight-mile Golden Center Freeway—called “the Freeway to Nowhere” by critics when it was constructed in the 1960s—cut a wide, controversial swath through Nevada City and Grass Valley, forever altering the look and character of both communities, but especially Nevada City.
Steve Cottrell: Echoes From Our Past - June 18, 1903: A multi-ballot election for Nevada City
While watching the recent 15-ballot drama that led to election of a new Speaker of the House, I was reminded of what happened in Nevada City in 1903 when Mayor Alexander Gault died and the board of town trustees (now called city council) met to name his replacement.
Echoes From Our Past: May 1876 featured a railroad and reunion
When the Nevada County Narrow Gauge Railroad was nearing completion in 1876, The Union suggested that a party be held to celebrate the linking of Grass Valley and Nevada City with the Central Pacific Railroad in Colfax, and that the party should double as a reunion of former county residents who, following the gold rush, had scattered to the four winds. Shortly after The Union made the suggestion, a group calling itself the Old Settlers Committee organized.
Echoes From Our Past: Recalling a successful 19th century promotion
In early 1892, when it was announced that the National Editorial Association (now called National Newspaper Association) was planning to hold its annual convention in San Francisco in May, and tour as much of Northern California as possible while they were here, the Nevada County Board of Trade saw an opportunity to promote this area in a way not previously possible.
Guest Commentary: Female horseshoe crab harvest will diminish the bay
By Steve Cottrell Steve Cottrell is president of the Delaware Audubon Society. Delaware Audubon is standing up to defend the charismatic red knot from being driven to extinction by a shortsighted fisheries commission, which is now proposing to further endanger the shorebird by recommending the depletion of the red knot’s critical food source.
Steve Cottrell: The 1858 Nevada County judge election
With all the social media buzz these days involving alleged voter fraud, gerrymandering, alternate electors, ballot stuffing and more, a look back at an early Nevada County election seems in order — the 1858 county judge race, in particular. There were three candidates: Charles Wilson Hill, Henry Montgomery Moore and David Belden. Hill was 29; Moore 49; Belden only 26.
A mental health minefield: the increasing pressure on cyber security teams
Print Details Published: Monday, 12 September 2022 13:36 The weight of stress and anxiety on cyber security professionals is mounting, it is therefore no wonder that many security leaders have experienced negative emotions at work, including depression, anger, and anxiety. Steve Cottrell explores the issue. Anxiety and stress can have a corrosive effect on performance, decision-making, and workplace culture. They often stem from situations where we face problems that we don’t have clarity on.
Turn off the red light: The day slots were locked and bordellos closed
Eighty years ago today, an agreement to cooperate with the United States Army was implemented in Nevada County. The agreement, worked out following meetings between city and county leaders and military officials from Camp Beale (now Beale Air Force Base), stipulated that all slot machines and other gambling devices in the county would be locked away, and all bordellos would turn off their inviting red lights “for the duration” of World War II. On Aug.
Delaware's horseshoe crab policy is in urgent need of reform
Steve Cottrell Special to the USA TODAY Network A press release recently issued by the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, titled “Growing Horseshoe Crab Population Supports Migratory Shorebirds along Delaware Bay, Including Threatened Red Knots,” leaves readers with the impression that all is well with the Red Knot, the iconic shorebird listed as an endangered species by the state of Delaware.
Steve Cottrell: Recalling the 1870s roller skating craze
A craze began on the East Coast in 1869 and soon spread west, making its Nevada County appearance a year later: Roller skating. It began growing in popularity following the Civil War, due in large part to James Plimpton’s invention of a four-wheel skate that made it possible to steer and maneuver with the ease of ice skaters. The wheels were attached to boards cut and shaped to accommodate specific shoe sizes and secured to the skater’s shoes with leather straps.
Top lessons for CISO success
When you have more than two decades of working as a CISO under your belt, it becomes second nature to listen out for the best advice and lessons learnt amongst your peers. After conferring with security heads from far and wide over the past few months, these were the best pieces of advice given, writes Steve Cottrell, EMEA CTO at Vectra — who has served as Group CISO at Admiral Group and CSO at Fujitsu, among other roles.
Echoes from our past - The Lone Pine: A Nevada County landmark
Imagine for a moment an obituary for a scraggly tree, its roots exposed before the wind finally broke it free. Lines from a Ralph Waldo Emerson poem? No, it describes April 10, 1911, newspaper accounts of the death of the Lone Pine — a celebrated Nevada County link to a time when hydraulic mining was ravaging the landscape.
Steve Cottrell: Nevada County’s election scandal, over 100 years ago
Rigged election? Yes. Fraudulent ballots? Absolutely. Biden versus Trump 2020? No, Nevada County 1888. On Nov. 6, 1888, incumbent Nevada County Sheriff George Lord was defeated by barber George Dunster — the Truckee man’s name having been put on the ballot to make sure Democrats had a slate of candidates for all offices. Lord was so confident of winning he didn’t bother to campaign, but when the ballots were tallied, Dunster had 2,120 votes and Sheriff Lord only 2,040.
Steve Cottrell: Rector brothers were lifelong hoteliers
There have been several owners of Nevada City’s most famous hostelry — now rebranded with its original National Exchange Hotel name — and the longest-serving were members of the Rector family. Although John and Bayliss Rector are identified in local history as its primary owners, two second-generation Rector brothers also operated the National, as did Bayliss’ widow. If ever the phrase “family-run business” applied, it was the Rectors’ 44-year association with the Gold Rush-era building.
Steve Cottrell: A store left in ruin
By Steve Cottrell | Special to The Union More than one major 19th century fire left downtown Nevada City and Grass Valley with piles of smoldering ash. For Nevada City, fires in 1851, 1856 and 1863 were especially devastating. For Grass Valley, an 1855 blaze was the most severe. But smaller fires have impacted our two communities as well — including one that struck July 21, 1928, when the Alpha Hardware & Supply Co. building in Nevada City was destroyed by a blaze that exploded with a fury.
Tuckers Solicitors ICO Fine Original
As if the risk of disruption and data theft wasn’t reason enough for organisations to improve security hygiene and protect against ransomware attacks, the ICO is baring its teeth against victims who could have done more. For Tuckers Solicitors, with no Multi-Factor Authentication and an unpatched vulnerability, it would have been easy for the attacker to infiltrate the network, install hacking tools, and even create their own account on the system before they deployed ransomware. This gave .....
Conflicting history: Sometimes the stories don’t match the history books
By Steve Cottrell | Special to The Union In 1982, the Nevada City Chamber of Commerce established a bifurcated award honoring visual and performing artists — a long-overdue award that recognized art as a major contributor to the local economy. The board of directors unanimously supported the idea and John Parent, as I recall, suggested it be named for Lee and Sally Lewis.
Le FBI demande aux athlètes olympiques de laisser leurs téléphones personnels à la maison avant les Jeux de Pékin
Le FBI demande aux athlètes olympiques de laisser leurs téléphones personnels à la maison avant les Jeux de Pékin Le FBI demande instamment aux athlètes olympiques de laisser leurs téléphones portables personnels chez eux et d’emporter des téléphones jetables aux Jeux olympiques d’hiver de Pékin ce mois-ci, en raison d’une menace de « cyberactivités malveillantes ».
Echoes from our Past: Charles Snowden Fairfax, a noble pioneer
By Steve Cottrell | Special to The Union It was not uncommon for men headed to California during the gold rush to organize as a mining company before leaving home and, once their mining operation was up and running here, share the profits based on the amount of stock each man held in the company. And to avoid exorbitant supply-and-demand prices in California, those who traveled by sea often stowed boots, pans, picks, shovels and other mining supplies on the ship taking them ‘round the Horn.
Steve Cottrell: How Nevada City became ‘The Christmas Card’
By Steve Cottrell | Special to The Union A few scenes for a Western film were shot at Jones Bar in 1914, and for 107 years Nevada County has been showcased anonymously in several movies and television commercials. When “Moonshine County Express” was filmed here in 1977, it was set in the South, as was “Undercover With the KKK,” shot in 1978.
Commentary: Tallamy’s work results in Delaware Audubon honor
By Steve Cottrell Following a one-year hiatus due to the coronavirus emergency, Delaware Audubon resumed its tradition of an annual awards dinner on Dec. 4 at Deerfield in Newark. This year, we were privileged to present our Conservation Award to the acclaimed author Dr. Doug Tallamy of the Department of Entomology & Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware.
History: Nevada County’s high-grading scandal of 1936-37
By Steve Cottrell Special to The Union Editor’s note: The term “high-grading” dates from the Gold Rush. Originally, it meant the selective theft by miners of only the highest grade of gold, but came to mean gold regardless of its quality. Although the Gold Reserve Act of 1934 boosted the price of gold from $20.67 per troy ounce to $35, it prohibited private ownership or sales.
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