House Boarded Up To Prevent Vandalism

  Below is the notice that was circulated around town shortly after we discovered the latest incident.

Vandals Win

   Today it is with heavy heart that we must report that we are boarding up the windows of the Patterson House Museum. Some time between August 29th and September 4th someone decided to hurl a rock from Patterson Avenue through one of our restored windows. We would offer a reward for the arrest and conviction of this person but alas it will cost us about $50.00 to replace the window. We will still be open on weekends but we can no longer show off with pride our history. We ask all parents to talk to their kids about destroying others property. We can only surmise that to some residents of Winchester that their history does not matter. How Sad! Since May the Patterson House Museum has been broken into 3 times and 3 of the new windows broken. This Museum belongs to each and every citizen and as of this date all the restoration has been done with generous contributions from local residents and Patterson Family members. Each act of vandalism takes away from our efforts to restore the Patterson House which was built in 1891. Can we all work together to STOP THIS SENSELESS VANDALISM

Thank You

Winchester Historical Society of Pleasant Valley

  In the near future it is planned to find some way to put up shutters. One thought is that we will paint the shutters with pictures depicting Winchester sites and early pioneers.

Termites Gone

  Thanks to Northstar Exterminators the termite problem has been put behind us for the time being.Again we thank them for donating their services for free. If you want to thank them we suggest you send them your business.

North Star Exterminators, Inc.

11552 Cedar Ave.

P. O . Box 11

Bloomington, Ca. 92316

909-877-1810

Property Tax Update

  As we mentioned in our last issue The Patterson House Museum now has tax exempt status with the County of Riverside for property taxes. We have received a refund of $595.74. We are still responsible for them pesky tag on assessments but they are only $64.60 a year and we have paid those for this year.

Historical Society Goes Back To School

  October 21st was the date set for the Winchester School Fall Festival. The society was invited to participate and we gladly accepted. The display consisted of the Winchester Doll, The Tilla Patterson Wells Fargo Coin, and replications of an old Farmal tractor and Wells Fargo stage coach. We distributed some information about our community. A good time was had by all. We hope to soon take some of our local history into the classrooms of the Winchester School that has been in existence since 1882.

Exhibits Planned

  Plans are underway for two exhibits at the museum for some time after Christmas at the museum. One will be an exhibit of "Winchester Days". Some of the exhibit will date back to 1976. Another exhibit planned is old Cub and Boy Scouting memorabilia that we have gathered over the years. More information on this exhibit in our next newsletter.

Melba Hoffman Tribute Planned

  A tribute to Melba Hoffman is planned for November 13th at the Valle Vista Community Center from 6 P.M. until 10 P.M. Admission is $5 and all funds go to help the Valley-Wide Foundation. If you want more information or tickets, if still available, call Valley- wide at (909) 654-1505.

Who We Are

  The Ploughshare & Pruning Hook is published bi- monthly by the Winchester Historical Society of Pleasant Valley. The sole purpose is the let the community and others interested in preserving our history a glimpse into our past, present, and future history. We can be reached by mail at P.O. Box 69, Winchester, California 92596-0069 or by phone at (909) 926-4039. Donations to help support this newsletter and other activities are tax deductible as a gift to charity. We also accept gift writings about our local history and will publish them as space permits. Guest speakers and displays are available upon request.                                                                       E-mail gregg@koan.com

7.1 and Standing

  As most all know the earth moved under our feet this October. A 7.1 earthquake struck near Twenty Nine Palms and gave most of Southern California, along with parts of Arizona and Nevada, a very rude early morning wake-up call. We are happy to say that there appears to have been no damage to The Patterson House. One would think that when John and Clarence Patterson built the house they knew about earthquakes thank goodness.

  If you would like to write an article of your experiences growing up in the area we would love to print them in the newsletter. Just sit down and type your thoughts and forward them to the society.