Our team of dedicated Archivists handed me a clipping a while ago. It's one of those things you find as you do Archival work. They thought, and I agree, that it belongs on Guided By History.

All of us have minor phobias that we don't necessarily share with everyone. Some avoid under-cooked food , some people are bowled over by odors  that no one else is even aware of. Some are acutely aware of germs  and general uncleanliness.

Well, this AP  image proves that where there's a clientele, there's a way. An ATM manufacturer found a way to sanitize Japanese bills as the machine dispensed them. It's from a 1996 item in the San Francisco Chronicle , whose caption read, "the money-laundering device will ensure nothing more than clean cash gets transferred to supersensitive bank customers."

I haven't found if the machines are in operation.

Anybody know if these are out there anywhere?

Posted by Charles at 07:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Found in Artifacts, Environment, Misc, Prepare, Psychology, Wells Fargo Bank

Wells Fargo has a good history of employing women. Between 1873 and 1918, Wells Fargo hired over 350 women as agents, whose duties included handling shipments of money, delivering mail, loading gold aboard trains and stagecoaches, selling money orders, and transferring funds by telegraph. Hundreds more women worked at Wells Fargo as auditors, clerks, copywriters, stenographers, and telephone operators.

One agent of note was Oregonian Kate Buick, employed by Wells Fargo & Co.'s Express in the Roseburg office from 1898 to 1912. Ms. Buick learned Morse code from her father, who was one of the first telegraph operators on the Southern Pacific Railroad line  between Roseburg and San Francisco.

In 1880, President Rutherford B. Hayes  made a trip across the West  and visited Oregon. A newspaper reporter covering the President’s visit came to the telegraph office to wire his report back East. Her father was overwhelmed with work at that moment, so Kate volunteered to send the telegram.

As Kate started to tap the message, the reporter said that he preferred an adult send the message—Kate was only thirteen years old at the time!

Immediately, the reporter penciled an addition to the story and announced to the nation that a young girl from Oregon sent the telegram. Kate's niece, Veva Buick Poorman, further recalled in a later interview that Kate Buick contributed to the war effort by using her knowledge of Morse code  to instruct over fifty people during World War I.

Posted by Steve at 10:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Found in Artifacts, At Work, Experts, Misc, Museums, Perspective, Railroads, Remember, Transportation, Wells Fargo Bank, Women's History

The other day a family came in to visit the Old Sacramento Museum, led by the matriarch. I had a nice conversation with the woman, the subject of which prompted me to write this post. We were discussing Black Bart, and we got on the subject of James Hume, Wells Fargo's Special Detective who brought Black Bart to justice after years of investigation.

She told me that she and her husband were caretakers of Hume Castle in Berkeley, California  back in the 1970s. I had no idea there was such a thing as Hume Castle in Berkeley — I wondered if it had anything to do with Wells Fargo's legendary Detective. I know Hume died in Berkeley in 1908, at age 77, after his retirement from Wells Fargo. But again, I never knew of a Hume Castle.

I started researching the castle and discovered there was a relation between Wells Fargo's Hume, and this castle in Berkeley. I discovered the castle was built in 1927, long after Hume's death. The original owners of the castle were Samuel James Hume and his wife Portia Hume. Samuel was James Hume's only son, born in 1885.

Samuel Hume was educated at Harvard and earned a degree in theater. He created the first exhibition of stagecraft   in the United States. By 1918, Samuel had returned to Berkeley as an assistant professor at the University of California , eventually becoming the head of the Greek Theater Department there. His wife, Portia Bell Hume , was a pioneer in the field of Psychiatry and lent her name to the modern Portia Bell Hume Behavioral Health and Training Center .

In 1927 the Humes engaged architect John Hudson Thomas  to build a replica of a 13th-century French Monastery . This became their home, known alternately as Hume Cloister or Hume Castle. The building still stands at 2900 Buena Vista Way in Berkeley, and has been listed as a historic landmark of Berkeley  since 1985.

There it is! Wells Fargo had a role in the history of this landmark! James Hume was headquartered in San Francisco, grounded in the area. The Humes resided across San Francisco Bay in Berkeley, home to the great new University of the West.

You can imagine conversations at dinner, with the elder Hume encouraging his creative child to go to college and holding UC as the model. The younger Hume took the advice and brought his talents back to Berkeley and established a monument to the family name.

Cool!

Posted by Greg at 04:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Found in Artifacts, James Hume, Misc, Remember, San Francisco, Wells Fargo Bank

Robberies of treasure carried by Wells Fargo Express aboard stagecoaches, unfortunately did take place. But Wells Fargo's crack detective force pursued the bandits with cold calculation and didn't stop pursuing till they netted the bad guys and locked them away. The legend "Wells Fargo Never Forgets" is the single best artifact from those years.

The town of Umatilla, Oregon  is nestled on the Columbia River  about three hours east of Portland. On October 21st, 1875, six miles outside of Umatilla, two men robbed the stagecoach from Boise City  and made off with gold from the Idaho mines .

Wells Fargo's detective force immediately sprang into action. Portland's Special Agent H. C. Paige sent a telegram to John J. Valentine, General Superintendent of Wells Fargo, to inform him that the extent of loss was unknown — but agents were in pursuit of the robbers. On October 29th, Paige wrote a letter to Valentine from Baker City , reporting a loss of up to $4,000, based upon the value of the gold listed on the manifest. Once the loss was known, Paige distributed a reward poster .

At first, Paige went after a red-headed fellow he had been suspicious of, based on a comb with red hairs found at the crime scene. A nearby hotel keeper confirmed the comb belonged to the suspect. On November 5th, Paige wrote Valentine from Pendleton . Two other suspects had confessed to the robbery and were in custody.

Paige had solved the case.

There is more about Wells Fargo's detective force at the Portland Museum. Our new exhibit, "Crime Scene Investigation: Officers in Pursuit," officially opened on January 16th. Check it out!

Posted by Steve at 09:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Found in Artifacts, At Work, Crime, Experts, First-hand Accounts, Misc, Museums, Perspective, Remember, Stagecoach, Wells Fargo Bank

The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  was born on January 15, 1929. A national holiday   to honor his memory and accomplishments happens every year near this date. It's this weekend.

I'm an admirer of Dr. King . I remember hearing him on the evening news and the palpable change in consciousness he brought about. Before King, you see, Civil Rights for African Americans  were hard to get, and small gains were so often reversed. Americans were either oblivious or opposed to justice for Blacks. After King began  his work, though, people were suddenly aware of African Americans' struggles, and many who were oblivious became sympathetic.

I remember his murder in 1968, too. School was cancelled, and our neighborhood was absolutely silent. Most people were watching TV, but even birds and dogs were quiet that day. I was a little kid, but I felt the enormity of it. More than war, or Nixon, music, or any other factors that shaped that era, those last couple years of Dr. King's life affected me and the person I have become.

It's those words. And that voice.

King was a magical speaker . Certain arias in opera bring tears to my eyes — some sort of reaction to the emotion in music, I guess. (No wisecracks!) It doesn't happen with any other music. Whenever I listen to Dr. King's speeches, the same darn thing happens — I get all misty and sniffly. I can't watch documentaries on Dr. King or the Movement without becoming a wreck I credit the power of conviction in King's words, as well as the royalty of his voice. He's truly larger than life.

So I was picking through some old LPs in a 2nd hand store last year, and came upon this record. It is the speech Dr. King gave in Detroit in June, 1963 , as he moved toward the historic rally at the Lincoln Memorial   that summer. The speech  he delivered was the first time he used the "I Have a Dream" piece — perhaps the greatest speech of the century.

The record, by the way, was captured and distributed by Gordy Records, a division of Barry Gordy's Motown  label. Gordy Records was the label Motown developed for spoken word albums , a standard genre of the time. "The Great March To Freedom: Rev. Martin Luther King Speaks" was the inaugural disc from Gordy.

So there you have it — my personal MLK Day. It means a lot to me because he means a lot to me. Also, Guided By History will blog about Black History Month  most of February.

Let this be the first post that celebrates Black History! 

Posted by Charles at 11:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Found in Artifacts, Assassinations, Events, First-hand Accounts, Holidays, Misc, Music, Opera, Perspective, Protests, Remember, Wells Fargo Bank

As I wrote last week, and as you see here, I got a new banker's uniform. Here at the Wells Fargo Museum in Old Sacramento, we give tours and dress in the style of the era. My pocket watch gave my get-up a classic finish. It also got me thinking about watches Wells Fargo presented in recognition of heroic work. I told the story of Aaron Y. Ross, but another man comes to mind.

James Wales Miller was a stagecoach driver. While on his route one day he outran would-be stagecoach robbers and saved the Wells Fargo treasure box. Miller was asked what he wanted for his valor and he responded;

"A dame big bullion watch."

And that’s what Miller got. Wells Fargo presented Miller a silver watch and chain that together weighed approximately two and one-half pounds. The watch alone was approximately three inches in circumference, and one inch wide.

Although such watches as Ross's and Miller's were presented for valor, heroism was not the only reason to Wells Fargo bestowed watches. Non-employees who helped the company were presented with these exclusive watches on occasion. Thomas W. Davies was one such man. A treasure box was dropped from a stagecoach near San Diego, "carrying 10,000 worth in gold from the Golden Chariot Mine ." Davies found and returned the treasure box to Wells Fargo—intact. Superintendent John J. Valentine sent Davies a presentation watch with an inscription that read:

"As recognition of his integrity in protecting and restoring the Treasure Box, with valuable contents, lost from the Julian City Stage , near San Diego, October 1, 1873."

The loyalty, courage and honesty these men showed paid off for them in the end. Wells Fargo appreciated their integrity, and presented them with some of the finest watches of the time.

Posted by Greg at 03:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)
Found in Artifacts, At Work, Crime, Gold, Misc, Museums, Perspective, Photographs, Remember, Sacramento, Stagecoach, Wells Fargo Bank

I just got a new period costume for my work here at the Old Sacramento History Museum. I added a pocket watch to finish off the the banker's uniform and give it a classic feel. It is a nice but humble watch, and goes well with the 1860s garb, but it is positively shabby compared to the watches some people received in recognition for valor while working for Wells Fargo.

The first person that comes to my mind when I think about these presentation watches is an agent named Aaron Y. Ross. Ross received the watch for defending an express rail car January 23, 1883 in Montello, Nevada . It was a winter night when bandits accosted the train on the Central Pacific Railroad  line. Ross was holed up in the Wells Fargo express car as the thieves attempted to rob the train. The men ordered Ross out of the car but he refused

The badmen opened fire on Ross. He was wounded three times in the crossfire, but he remained defending the car. Ross returned fire and killed one of the bandits. The others attempted to burn Ross out of the car but were unable to set the car ablaze. The gang eventually gave up and Ross was victorious in defending Wells Fargo's treasure.

Ross defended a Wells Fargo shipment of only 600 dollars, "but next door in the postal car was $500,000 in currency," which was also saved thanks to Ross's valor. The gang escaped but was arrested five days later in Utah.

For his courage, Wells Fargo presented Ross a gold watch and chain valued at 650 dollars, along with 1000 dollars in cash. All his medical bills were paid, too. The presentation watch read:

"From Wells, Fargo & Company to MESSENGER Aaron Y. Ross. In token of his courageous and successful defence of the EXPRESS CAR against Highway Robbers at Montello, Nev. JANUARY 23, 1883."

Next week, I'll tell you about another fine watch or two, presented by Wells Fargo to its bravest defenders. Happy New Year!

Posted by Greg at 01:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Found in Artifacts, At Work, Crime, Misc, Museums, New Year's Day, Perspective, Prepare, Railroads, Remember, Sacramento, Transportation, Wells Fargo Bank

Posted by Charles at 09:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
Found in Artifacts, At Home, Branding, Holidays, Misc, New Year's Day, Perspective, Wells Fargo Bank

Posted by Charles at 09:26 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Found in Artifacts, At Work, Events, Holidays, Misc, New Year's Day, Participate, Perspective, Remember, San Francisco, Wells Fargo Bank

Looking for a topic (ANY topic!) to write about today, I came across a bit about "Pony Bob" Haslam  and his career as Pony Express rider, Wells Fargo messenger, and entertainer.

The adventures of "Pony Bob" Haslam—so named for his fast riding  for the Pony Express—made him the hero of a novel, Pony Bob, the Reckless Rider of the Rockies, a title rarely found today. Haslam rode 120 miles while wounded, in his Pony Express days, and was best known for covering 380 miles in 36 hours.

The Pony Express lasted only eighteen months, but a guy like Haslam is an asset anytime. Wells Fargo had acquired the Pony Express in its final months and kept Haslam on as a rider between Virginia City  and Sacramento. By 1887, Haslam was ready to show his derring-do in Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show , which took a grand European tour that year. The Wild West Show performed before the crowned heads and Haslam was part of that show.

Just before he was hired on with Buffalo Bill's tour, Haslam was out West selecting a few bison for Buffalo Bill's show. By that time, American Bison herds had decreased by millions in a short time, and from 2 million to 2 thousand in only ten years. One newspaper lamented: "What a sad criterion on the wantonness and heartlessness of the American hunter!"

So this post ends on a strangely sad note, as history often does. It shows all these ironies or paradoxes (take your pick!) that keep Historians combing the books for answers. Here's a guy, Haslam, whose strength and courage landed him fame. Here's the Pony Express, an enterprise doomed to fail but capturing a special place in American lore. Here's Buffalo Bill, whose Wild West Show pretty much laid out the mythic story of the West that we all recognize, even though it's largely false. All these things wrapped up in a moment's tale of Haslam joining Buffalo Bill's show.

Hey, it's what I do!

Posted by Charles at 12:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
Found in Animals, Artifacts, Environment, Hollywood, Misc, Perspective, Pony Express, Remember, Sacramento, Wells Fargo Bank, Westerns

The Wells Fargo News was the internal Company newspaper in 1984. In the February 20 edition of the News, there was a story about Wells Fargo's newly-implemented smoking policy. Before I go into that, let me tell you that the current policy is no smoking at all in any facility, Company-wide. This policy is consistent with applicable laws.

In 1984, the tide was turning  against smoking. Non-smoking was becoming a stance—people who did not smoke were less willing to defer to people who did. By 1984, non-smokers were getting more confident in objecting to smoking. The year before, a smoker with terminal cancer had sued tobacco companies , a topic of heated conversation. Later, Congress banned smoking on all airline flights of two hours or less in 1987. The following year, Surgeon General C. Everett Koop  issued a report that likened addiction to nicotine to that of heroin. Smoking was transforming in the 80s, from an ordinary behavior to an aberation.

People wrestled with the issue in restaurants, public services and the workplace. The strength of the non-smoking position was hard to resist. For one, smoking is bad for everyone's health . For another, there is a moral issue  (pdf) about who should have more freedom—people who pollute or the people who suffer it. Naturally, the answer was to balance it as much as possible. Non-smoking sections were established, laws governing public spaces were passed, and committees were formed to figure out how to be fair at work.

Wells Fargo's policy in 1984 reflected the shift away from accommodating smokers  to accommodating non-smokers. The policy set up boundaries and designated areas. The policy stated the committment to"minimizing the harmful effects and discomfort smoking produces in confined office workspaces." While the new policy was determined to accommodate, "insofar as possible," both smokers and non-smokers, the chief article in the new policy was clearly directed away from smoking as the status quo, and toward non-smoking as normal behavior: "if a satisfactory accommodation cannot be reached," the new policy declared, the default position was "to prohibit smoking in the affected workplace."

Within fifteen years , most localities had developed non-smoking policies that made workplaces smoke free.

(Thanks to Norman for the title. Such good fun!)

Posted by Charles at 03:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Found in Artifacts, Environment, First-hand Accounts, Misc, Perspective, Remember, Substance abuse, Wells Fargo Bank

It sure does, especially when it is pertinent to the history of Wells Fargo  and its place in communities since 1852. So we go through the boxes and appraise each piece. We keep the stuff that contributes to our Company memory. But we have no need for flyers announcing a bake sale in 1971, nor brochures for a 1982 Honda  that someone couldn't bear to throw away.

So I was looking over some stuff the other day and I found a piece of actual history: a genuine, Cold War-era handbill that touted a newsletter, purporting to be the "Best Private Intelligence Service in Existence." Now, such a claim relies on one of two basic things: one, they really are the best in existence; or 2, everyone is so afraid of World War III  they believe anything.

The Cold War , as you know, was based as much on the latter as it was on any real threat. People were quite worried about Soviet ambitions and the spectre of atomic war . The newsletter that the handbill referred to— available by subscription, and while you're at it, back issues are available too!—asserted its reputation as the first source for intelligence.

Assembled and published by a man named Kenneth de Courcy , the newsletter ostensibly brought the innermost workings of global intelligence to the attention of the common man. de Courcy was later discredited , but at the height of his publication he had an office in the Emp ire State Building .

Knowing the secrets of international politics, de Courcy's handbill insisted, was vital to making the right moves in everyday life. "We live in strange times," the handbill intones. "(F)irst-class intelligence is a condition of success...The citizen who does not know what is really happening, and what is probably going to happen, cannot avoid making ghastly mistakes in private life, business and politics."

One sees the vigilant insurance salesman in Anytown, USA, careful to not buy the wrong cut of tenderloin, not willing to let the floozy buy him one more sidecar, checking de Courcy's newletter carefully before voting on a sewer bond issue. All this in the name of international security, the responsibility of the ordinary man. Such was the Cold War esprit de l’époque.

There are several titles of the publication referenced in the text of the handbill: "Review of World Affairs," "Review," "Digest" and "The World Crisis." But the title of what you're buying isn't anywhere in the piece—not even on the order blank. The best-kept secret is the actual title of the darn thing de Courcy is selling!

Posted by Charles at 12:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Found in Artifacts, Misc, Perspective, Psychology, Remember, Wells Fargo Bank

The San Francisco Examiner  ran this story on July 9, 1950, and some anonymous (but intrepid!) historian saved it. Hey, heroically preserving the past — your past.— is what historians do everyday.

OK, anyway...the story, as you can see, is about an express agent for Railway Express Agency  in Oakland, California , named Margaret Garvey. The news value, at least in 1950, was "a woman doing a man's job"  — a contradiction in those days. (Today, of course, there is only "a worker doing a job.") In 1950, U.S. culture was smack in the middle of that perception of women's weakness , even after they had taken a critical and heroic labor role in World War II . The sensibility of the times — the  zeitgeist  — was that a woman's proper place was in the home.

So the story about Garvey has a tone of amusement, but closer examination reveals two key skills in her work: Margaret manages the office, and she's unflappable as a salesperson. The article tells that she got the job as Agent, and in the middle of the Great Depression to boot.

The article also emphasizes Garvey's work after hours in civic causes — she's in charge there, as well. Garvey uses every interaction to push the business, and it's in that regard that feminism emerges. (That's feminism as Movement , and feminism as state of being , for you linguistic turn  fans out there.) She doesn't shrink from interaction, and doesn't demur to men just because women were "supposed" to. Alternately, Garvey used her position as a woman to start a conversation that most men, she figured, neither expected nor would resist.

Margaret Garvey was in charge of selling her business and making the operation run effectively. Any small business operator will tell you that's the element of work: selling the goods and keeping track. This story is cool because Garvey used the "subordinate" position of women at that time to place herself in a principal position.

That's not just clever — that's success. Historic success!

Posted by Charles at 03:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Found in Artifacts, At Work, Misc, Prepare, Remember, Wells Fargo Bank

On April 15, 1868 (a Wednesday if you're keeping track), a crowd gathered at the Abbot-Downing factory  in Concord, New Hampshire. A special steam engine pulled in to lead fifteen flatcars and four boxcars. These cars were loaded with the largest stagecoach order ever—a proud fleet of 30 elegant coaches, bound for Wells, Fargo and Co.'s stagecoach empire, the Great Overland Mail.

Our San Diego museum features one of the 30 coaches from this order. The four box cars at the end of the train, incidentally, carried harnesses for the horses waiting at the destination to pull the stagecoaches. There is a trunk in the San Diego museum made by the same harness-maker who supplied the shipment.

When the Pembroke engine steamed into Omaha, Nebraska  a week later, Wells Fargo agents and teams of horses were there to welcome the shipment.

The stagecoaches went into service right away, carrying packages and passengers across thousands of miles: Nevada to Wyoming, south to Denver's high mountains , north into the Montana and Idaho wilderness .

Stagecoaches had to be suitable for rugged trips like these. Wells Fargo specified details like "extra roomy inside," as well as:

Iron work to be extra stout; [thorough]braces 31/4 wide &; 13/8 thick stout stitched; Bodies made roomy inside &; 3 in. more room between back &; middle seats; candle lamps extra large size.

Skilled Abbot-Downing craftsmen shaped iron, leather, and oak, ash, and elm, to construct the vehicles.

A finished coach weighed 2,223 pounds and cost $2,500 . A deluxe paint job was an extra $20, and fancy lanterns another $7. Coaches seated eighteen people: nine inside and nine more on top, including the driver and shotgun messenger. Upholstered in leather and damask cloth, painted red and yellow and finished with a landscape on each door, the Concord Coach was one of the marvels of American craftsmanship .

Posted by Charles at 12:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)
Found in Artifacts, Misc, Museums, Remember, Stagecoach, Transportation, Travel, Wells Fargo Bank

Through December 22, Wells Fargo is running a contest  where you can submit your own music video of the song, "The Wells Fargo Wagon" from The Music Man  and you can win excellent prizes. In support of this contest — and in support of our Guided By History community — we got Steve Greenwood, curator of the Wells Fargo Museum in Portland, to write the definitive history of the Wells Fargo Wagon. OK, maybe not definitive. But a darn good one, anyway! (CR)

100 years ago, Americans depended on horse-drawn vehicles  to move a variety of goods around town, including ice  and ice cream , beer  and of course, Express packages.

With Wells Fargo & Co.'s Express, shipments arrived in communities by stagecoach, steamship, or railroad. Express messengers delivered items to their final destination aboard wagons pulled by one or two horses. The famed Wells Fargo Wagon delivered goods of all sorts, from a grey mackinaw to some grapefruit from Tampa, as the song goes . The Wells Fargo wagon even delivered when a snow storm blanketed Salem, Oregon — the crew simply replaced the wagon wheels with sled runners.

Drivers were also alert for outgoing express. Instructions to drivers stated, "Wagonmen should never drive by call cards, but should stop and secure the shipment." The red and blue diamond-shaped signs were familiar across the U.S. and became a Wells Fargo logo.

Wells Fargo has been a financial services company from the very beginning. But the lore of the Company and its central role in the growth of the nation is tied to transportation—stagecoach, railroad, Pony Express. The Wells Fargo wagon was a common sight on American streets as communities grew. It meant excitement, as the song demonstrates, because it brought goods from faraway places, helped businesses get the tools and money they needed, and tied local neighborhoods to world markets.

Posted by Steve at 10:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Found in Artifacts, Branding, Misc, Music, Photographs, Remember, Stagecoach, The Music Man, Transportation, Wells Fargo Bank

Emails, memos, employee publications, a message from the Chief...all these things come into your cube  daily. Reading them is always important, of course, because you get the information you need to act responsibly. But the chat by the water cooler  is about how hard it is to get anything done when we have so many instructions.

Not all memos are bland, however. Sometimes they give us good information, while other times they lay down the law (finally doing something about that new guy near the window!). And if they're kept in the permanent records, a Historian can analyze the contents and maybe blog about them when the world is ready.

In the post-war era, as I discussed last summer, Wells Fargo's Public Relations office circulated memos that offered insights for workers to consider. The gist was to be positive, and positive things would follow. Over the years, other groups and executives sent memos about other things as well, and I found some in the Archives.

Most of them, as you'd expect, are the standard fare — make sure your TPS Reports  are in on time and don't staple the pages, please make sure you wear a blue hat on Thursday for the new campaign...you know, work stuff. But some are celebratory and salute the human need for good food at a good price. And some are downright forceful, stopping those among us who would ruin things for everybody .

But the memos present a snapshot of time that's real and everyday. Charges for telephone calls were a real issue once, before package deals and cell phones (like texting  is now).

So as I go through the fine points of the past, like memos, as I go through the big stuff, like contracts, I get a solid look at the everyday means of how people did business, as much as the everyday ends of that business. I get a real glimpse of how history unfolds — one person at a time or one day at a time.

And one hot lunch at a time.

Posted by Charles at 12:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Found in Artifacts, At Work, Misc, Remember, Wells Fargo Bank

In honor of Blog Action Day, I am pleased to boast of Wells Fargo's accomplishments in the Green Consciousness that's been sweeping the mainstream. Wells Fargo's history is a happening site for environmental awareness.

Our Archivist here at Wells Fargo is a total...um, Green disciplinarian, shall we say. Archivists preserve the past  and its artifacts, and Keri takes that to another level. As much as pestering us about recycling everything from batteries , plastic  and glass , she also pushes for digital record keeping. Digital records are easier to store and preserve, and they better manage resources as well. Less paper is used and less space is required in the long run for storage. Saves moola, too — triple play!

Guided By History has previously blogged Green about Earth Day, recycled paper, and getting behind the Sierra Club. Oh, and solar energy, another about supporting eco-groups. So we're on the Green thing.

And happy to participate today!

Posted by Charles at 12:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Found in Artifacts, At Work, Environment, Events, Misc, Perspective, Prepare, Remember, Wells Fargo Bank

Wells Fargo has been musically inclined since the Gold Rush. In 1855, we advanced money for an Italian opera troupe. However they defaulted, so we seized their trunk of costumes and musical instruments as security.

Actually, we are really kind hearted. In 1869, Madame Camilla Urso   proposed a music festival to benefit the Mercantile Library, featuring school children and musicians from around California and Nevada. Wells Fargo offered to carry sheet music, letters, and other equipment far and wide throughout its lines on the Pacific Coast for free. The successful San Francisco festival ran for five days in February 1870.

If it could be sent by express, Wells Fargo carried it. In May of 1860, a future jazz musician in Columbia asked Wells Fargo to supply copies of Schatzman's Sax Horn Instructor. Up they came from San Francisco.

On occasion, Wells Fargo contributed to the Big Bang Theory  . Mariposa agent Julia Jones delivered a bass drum to complete a brass band at Whitlock's Gold Mine . In the spring of 1897, this band, splendid in their white uniforms, serenaded Mariposans with "Old Folks at Home," "The Man in the Moon," and the "Young Bandsman."

In the summer of 1917, Wells Fargo also carried "several valuable violin bows from Colorado Springs to Chicago. Accompanying these bows in a handsome, sturdy, brass-bound packing case were also a few violins – one made by Nicola Amati   in 1662, another by Carlo Bergonzi   in 1723, and a third, modern one produced by Joseph Guarnerius   in 1731.

Wells Fargo starred in the performance of express service. Meredith Willson drew on his boyhood memories in Iowa to write The Music Man  . That story revolves around the arrival of band instruments on the "Wells Fargo Wagon." The whole town turns out to sing: "O-ho the Wells Fargo Wagon is-a comin' down the street, Oh, Please let it be for me!"

Our relations with opera singers improved through the years — we even starred in an opera. In 1910, when Puccini's Gold Rush opera The Girl of the Golden West   appeared, Wells Fargo's agent was heroic.

Posted by Bob at 09:55 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Found in Artifacts, Branding, Broadway, Gold, Hollywood, Misc, Movies, Music, Opera, Perspective, Remember, San Francisco, The Music Man, Wells Fargo Bank, Westerns

September brings the celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month , and I'll probably write several posts about it. My reasons are simple: there's lots to write about, and it's a topic I like. So there.

Latinos have been in America since it became America . Each region and nation has developed its own distinctiveness, which continues today as people move about, settle and live in different — sometimes multiple — areas.

In the late 18th century, Mexicans were expanding northwest into California to try and exploit the Pacific Coast. A couple generations later, Mexico got its independence from Spain — the US came soon after, in 1846. In the interim, Mexican people in California developed a short-lived, but romantic society: Californios. After annexation by the US, Californios' prominence quickly waned as their vast ranchos were broken up. Most died in sad circumstances, but one Californio was able to train his position and status.

General Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo  rose through army ranks to become commander of the Northern Frontier. Vallejo deftly handled relations with the Russian outpost at Fort Ross