THE KNIGHT FAMILY
In honor of March being Women’s History Month, during our History Makers program we will be making crafts inspired by women artists featured in our collection, along with some fun information here.
This week the Knight Family.
Native baskets vary in shape, size and purpose. Some baskets have very utilitarian purposes such as cooking and storing food, while other baskets are highly decorated and used as gifts or for ceremonial and commemorative purposes. Each basket represents special knowledge and skill of the basket maker, their ancestors and their community.
Mary Knight Benson (1877-1930)
Mary Knight married William Ralganal Benson around 1894, and as a couple they worked collaboratively in making and selling their highly valued Pomo baskets to both Anglo American collectors and world class museums like the Smithsonian Institute during the peak collecting era of 1890 to 1930.
The Mendocino County Museum’s collection of Knight family baskets were donated to the Museum in 1981 by Virginia Knight Buck, Mary Knight Benson’s niece.
Nellie White (1856-1942)
Nellie White was a Pomo basket maker, who was born in Point Arena on the Mendocino Coast in 1856. She had two daughters and taught them basket weaving including the traditional three-stick basket design. When her daughters, Rhoda and Emma married the Knight Brothers she moved to the Yokayo Rancheria located near Ukiah in 1905.
Rhoda Somersal Knight (1890-1958)
Rhoda Somersal Knight was born in Manchester on the Mendocino Coast to Nellie White and Jack Somersal. She married Stephen Knight around 1904 and moved to the Yokayo Rancheria (near Ukiah), where she had three children. Rhoda was an expert weaver of the three-stick coiled baskets known as one of the more difficult traditional designs that had been passed down for generations in her family.
(Mendocino County Museum)
ANDERSON VALLEY’S EARLY DAYS
by Maurice Tindall
Many events of the earlier days of Anderson Valley and the stories of them are fast becoming only memories and faint ones at that. One story that was recently revived was that of the Mason and Dixon line in the Valley.
Two youthful scions of influential families at either end of the Valley had a fight and some hard feeling was caused in each family. Outwardly no more was said and the matter was seemingly dropped. But there was a certain remembrance.
Some of the younger people of that day with their ingenious ways of description, thought of the Mason and Dixon dividing line of historical fame and the name caught on. The line was at the Denmark Canyon where Dr. Fleishner's office was. It was a good location because it marked the north and the south portions of the Valley and also made a separation of the properties of the two clans and their friends and relatives. Those north of the line tended toward Philo and those to the south went to Boonville.
Many years ago the matter had some local importance and a certain political influence. To the credit of those involved, all worked together when the good of Anderson Valley was concerned and for a great many years the matter has only been mentioned in rare instances and then in a jocular manner.
In earlier days the ranchers of the valley were quite prosperous. All were more or less diversified and were run with economy and hard work. Of course, now we can look back and see where a lot of prosperity was caused by the utilization of the natural resources at hand and there for the taking. We can see by reading that all the valleys in the county were pretty much the same. Feed was good, land was fertile, and taxes were very low.
Living at the time was cheaper not only because prices were low along with wages, but most every family had a garden and a cow or two. There were sheep, cattle and hogs and every family had their own poultry flock. Feed was cheap and plentiful besides the natural grass and the acorns and pepperwood nuts in the fall. Game and fish played a very important part also in the livings of many families.
Teaming was a source of income in the summer and fall and of course there had to be hay and grain for the teams. That took up most of the farming land. Then when the sawmill was started in Navarro (Wendling) many Valley people found employment there. Another industry of benefit to the early local people was the tanbark industry which made a year's grubstake for many. Early in the history of the Valley was the raising of grain for feed for livestock and most places would have some thrashing equipment. Grain was cut by a binder and stacked in round stacks to wait for the thresher.
Nearly every ranch had a granary or the some big bins for grain storage. Some might be sold but mostly it was fed on the farm and enough was held over for seed.
It must not be forgotten that the crew had to be fed at the ranch house and that was a big job for the women folks for there was a big crew of hungry men. The cooks took great pride in putting out good food and lots of it especially at threshing time.
Threshing was a hard, usually hot job and was a great place to separate the men from the boys.
‘BASKERVILLE, A SHERLOCK HOLMES MYSTERY’ by Ken Ludwig
A review by Marylyn Motherbear Scott, photos by Larry Wagner
Mendocino Theater Company Production — March 6 through April 6
Directed by Alexander Wright
Cast:
Sherlock Holmes ….. Ricci Dedola
Watson …………….. Michael Bonner
Actor one………… Brady Voss
Actor two ………… Lucas Kiehn – Thilman
Actor three ………… Lorry Lepaule
Just what the good doctor ordered!
Mendocino Theatre Company has opened its new season with Ken Ludwig’s Baskerville, a Sherlock Holmes Mystery, directed by Alexander Wright. It is a quick-witted, quick-footed gambol into what the Playwright, the Director, and Sherlock Holmes himself calls the bleak landscape of life. In today’s world, these are challenging times, for sure. That alone is a good reason to see this play.
The play is set in what Wright calls (in the directors notes), the desolate Devonshire Moors. Baskerville Hall lies in the unforgiving landscape that represents the dark soul of humanity …
I related less with the bleakness and more with tripping the light fantastic at every turn and nuance.
The cast is made of a five players— Ricci Dedola as Sherlock Holmes; Michael Bonner as Watson; Brady Voss as Actor 1; Lucas Kiehn – Thilman as Actor 2; and Lorry Lepaule as Actor 3. The three actors perform many characters in quick-change succession. It is quite an amazing feat of performance. Gender, age, nationality, makes no difference. This is one of the fine points of the play and one of the aspects that makes Baskerville a play for these times.
The thread that holds the story together is the Sherlock Holmes mystery. Sherlock, as a character, has the toughest job of all. He represents the more exacting parts of ourselves, the intellect, the part that insist upon consistency and getting it right. This Sherlock insists upon telling the story correctly, including any mistakes he makes. Sherlock, as an actor, is not free to have the fun the others have. Sherlock has to figure out the story for us all. He has to make sure the mystery is solved. Or not.
Watson is the link between Sherlock’s more exacting behavior and the other actor’s frivolity. He also gets to perform some romps. Watson is the record maker, the notetaker, the historian, if you will.
The other three characters have somewhat freewheeling parts often reminiscent of silent film antics, performing farcical dances, hanging onto each other in hilarious dance lines. Each of the three actors bring a different quality to their multiple roles.
Much to our delight, this is the third time we’re seeing Brady on the MTC stage. In this play, he brings a flirtatious and hilarious quality to the characters. Brady is both clown and villain.
Lucas brings a bit of romance to the scene. He is the sweet aspect of innocence. Trusting and brave. A charmer really.
Lorry, beloved long time MTC actor, and Director, our hometown girl, offers an amazing set of characters. Do not miss out!
In order for these amazing quick changes to occur, Chris Wright, former head of costumes at Universal Studios in LA, created over twenty quick-change items, each one from scratch and each specially designed to be shed and donned in the blink of an eye. In addition, the costuming was handsome and era appropriate.
The staging is accomplished by a rear projection screen. Beautiful large scenes of the Devonshire landscape, the Baskerville mansion, and others are projected onto a large backdrop. It seems sometimes there is a magic to it — now you see it; now you don’t.
Are you in the doldrums? Sad? Perhaps a bit depressed by bad news? Baskerville is the antidote. Ask anyone who’s already seen it. It is fun. Entertaining. AND, you will rarely get to see a more talented collection of performers on the stage. And here it is, the Mendocino Theatre Company stage, right in your own backyard.
For a ticket information go to ((707) 937-4477 or boxoffice@mendocinotheatre.org
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