Fresno’s Pioneer Women of the 1800s

Learn about early Fresno’s history through the eyes of the women who lived it. Meet a few of those who left the comforts of the South, the East, or the California Coast to become important contributors to a fledgling community. Entrepreneurs, researchers, landowners - some whose reputations at the time earned them recognition beyond Fresno, yet they are lost to history. Learn about the hardships they endured as well as their success in shaping life in Fresno County.

This will be both a Zoom and in-person session.

Pre-registration is required through the Fresno State Osher Lifelong Learning Institute.

Learn about the sawmills that emerged between 1852 and 1900, who built them, how they felled the Big Trees and got the lumber down the mountain. Meet a few of the early timber men and explore the rugged life on Pine Ridge where the only way in was by wagon or stage coach.. And an exit option was a risky ride on a flume!

NOTE: Sponsored by the Fresno Public Library, Heritage Center. Pre-registration is required.

Dive into a period of Fresno County history when Sierra timber was felled in response to the population boom of the late 1800s, and the railroad’s need for lumber. Meet the timber men at the center of sawmill activity. See their mills and learn how they moved giant logs. Get a glimpse of life on Pine Ridge, and what the women and children did to escape snowy winters.

NOTE: This is a 2-part session offered through Fresno State’s OLLI Program. Pre-registration is required. Click here to see the Fall 2021 catalog and get membership information..

Tuesday, November 9, 1:30-3pm & Tuesday, November 16, 1:30-3pm

Please note: This is a 2-part series in Fresno State’s Spring OLLI program. Thursday, April 29 and Thursday, May 6, 1:30-3 both days. Advance registration is required.

As Fresno transitioned from a village to a town in the late 1800s, it attracted people who would accelerate the town’s development in interesting and different ways. You will meet merchants,, bankers, businessmen, and women who were attracted to the abundant opportunities Fresno offered.

Please note: This is a series of 4 lectures (via Zoom) on Thursday/Friday October 22/23 and October 29/30, each from 1:30-3pm. The series is hosted by Fresno State’s Osher Life Long Institute (OLLI). Pre-registration is required. For details click here.

Take a visual tour of early Fresno and learn about the city’s beginnings through the people who came here - what they did and what they built. Starting in 1872, we will follow the evolution of the town over the next 45 years, highlighting the activities of its early founders. Learn where to find remnants of those early beginnings still visible in Fresno today but sometimes hiding in plain sight!

Travel back in time to explore a bit of Fresno’s history beginning in 1872.  Learn about the buildings that anchored the downtown street grid, how the grid was established, and who was responsible for it.  Visit four structures that were important parts of Fresno’s history between 1918 and 1932.  See how they are related to the route taken by travelers making their way through the downtown streets in the days before bypasses on the Golden State Highway (“99”).

This Zoom lecture is hosted by the Fresno Downtown Library. Registration begins October 8th.

Click here for details.

This is a 2-lecture series offered through Fresno State’s OLLI program. THURSDAYS | March 26 and April 2 at 2 - 3:30 p.m. Jeannine Raymond will take listeners on a visual tour of early Fresno to learn about the city’s beginnings through the people who came here - what they did and what they built. Starting in 1872, we will follow the evolution of the town over the next 45 years, highlighting the activities of its early founders. Learn where to find remnants of those early beginnings still visible in Fresno hiding in plain sight.

Advance registration is required.

At A Book Barn, 640 Clovis Ave., Clovis

Join us for a lecture on the history of the Wilson Island and its creator, Rosanna Cooper Wilson. Jeannine will take you on a journey back to the early 1900s with stories about the families who built this “Nob Hill” of Fresno. Learn about some of the people who laid the groundwork for Fresno becoming the hub of the Central San Joaquin Valley.

Where: California State University, Fresno OLLI program (Osher Lifelong Learning Institute).

Click here to sign up for an OLLI class.

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