Scow Schooner Alma and Shrimp Junk Grace Quan dock in Isleton May 6, 7, and 8, 2011!

Scow Schooner Alma and Shrimp Junk Grace Quan’s upcoming visit to Isleton!

From the late 1800’s through the 1920’s scow schooners connected The Delta and San Francisco by hauling cargo up and down the river. These sailing barges carried hay down from Sacramento to feed the horses of San Francisco, while also ferrying lumber from San Francisco up and down the meandering Sacramento River.

During that same time period, San Francisco’s Chinese fishermen built their own traditional looking junks to fish for shrimp in the shallows of San Francisco and San Pablo Bays. These junks, built with American lumber and Chinese boatbuilding techniques, provided shrimp for San Francisco markets as well as for drying and shipping overseas.

Over the weekend of May 6th -8th, Alma, the last remaining scow schooner will visit Isleton along with the Grace Quan, a replica of a late 1800’s San Francisco Bay shrimp junk. The two vessels, from San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park will open their decks for a number of events over the weekend.

On Friday, May 6th, grade school classes from Isleton will visit Grace Quan dockside and sail Alma on the river. Students will learn the histories of both boats and their connections to The Delta, while helping to set sail on the Alma and navigate her down the river.
Saturday, May 7th both Alma and the Grace Quan will be docked at the Isleton town dock and open to visitors free of charge. Come on down and explore the boats! Both Alma and Grace Quan will be open from 11 AM until 4 PM, with crew onboard to answer questions.

Sunday, May 8th, Alma will take a public sail along the river, leaving from the Isleton city dock. Pack a lunch and enjoy a relaxing Mother’s Day on Alma’s deck---or try your hand hauling up the sails! Along the 3-hour sail we’ll learn about the history of the Alma and her various careers on the river while enjoying the view. Boarding begins at 11:00AM and Alma will sail from 11:30 til 2:30. The cost of the 3-hour sail is $20 for adults and children age 12 and under are free. Reservations may be made during the open house on Saturday. Cash only, please.

For more information on Alma and Grace Quan’s visit to Isleton, please contact Mariah Gardner at mgardner@maritime.org, phone 415-292-6664 or email us at info@isletonhistory.org.

Save the Dates for the 2011 White Elephant Sale on May 28th and 29th!

The annual White Elephant Sale will be held on Saturday, May 28th and Sunday, May 29th on Memorial Day weekend for 2011. The White Elephant Sale is at the Isleton Community Center, 210 Jackson Boulevard. For more information such as where to drop off donations or to help with the event, email info@isletonhistory.org.

Chinese New Year Celebration Sunday, March 6, 2011

The annual Chinese New Year celebration will be held on Sunday, March 6, 2011. Festivities start at 11:30 AM with a lion dancer performance. Lion dancers will also be available to those who wish to have their businesses or structures blessed.

Also featured for Chinese New Year 2011 is the Taoist blessing of the Bing Kong Tong altar at 1:00 PM in the Museum at 33 Main Street. For more information please email info@isletonhistory.org or call Karen at 916-777-6906.

Museum Closed Christmas and New Year's Day

The museum will be closed for the weekends of Christmas 2010 and New Year's Day 2011.   The museum will resume its Saturday and Sunday hours of 11AM-4PM the weekend of January 8-9th, 2011.

However, you can always visit the museum by appointment only and not just on weekends. Please do email us at info@isletonhistory.org or museum curator Charlene at ibahs2ca@yahoo.com to make arrangements.

Also as a reminder if you want to schedule a walking tour of Main Street Isleton and the museum, please contact Sharon Fong at (916)-777-6838 or email her at fongsrae@yahoo.com.

General Meeting Thursday, December 9, 2010

The fourth quarter general meeting will be held Thursday, December 9, 2010 at the Museum on 33 Main Street. Tentatively scheduled are a cookie and recipe exchange along with a tentative guest speaker. For more information please email info@isletonhistory.org.

General Meeting Thursday October 7th, 6-8PM

The third quarterly general meeting will be held Thursday, October 7th, from 6-8PM. Location is at the second floor of Peter's Steak House, 203 Second Street, Isleton. A guest speaker discussing earlier times in the Isleton area is featured.  For more information please email info@isletonhistory.org; ibahs2ca@yahoo.com, call Charlene at 916-777-5186 or Karen at 916-777-6906.

A Celebration of Our History, Sunday June 13, 2010, 1PM to 5PM

The IBAHS and the Historic Preservation Stakeholder Committee for the city of Isleton in conjunction with the California Preservation Foundation are issuing the call for old Isleton pictures at the Isleton Community Center, 210 Jackson Boulevard, June 13th from 1PM to 5PM. There will be refreshments, door prizes, and presentations at this event. Bring old photographs and stories of Isleton, especially those of the Asian American District for the purpose of documenting the buildings.
Original pictures will be scanned and returned to the owner and photo credits annotated. Deadline for these pictures is June 13th. Email info@isletonhistory.org or call Karen at 916-777-6906 for more information or to make arrangements for the photos.

The menu SHOULD now properly link to the news...

...sorry about the change, but the provider of our blog used for news posts changed how they do things and required that they host the news page. But now we've fixed the navigation so it should be business as usual. And on this new template for the blog, the navigation menu is to the left. Again, sorry for the confusion, and thanks for your patience.

Annual White Elephant Sale May 29-30, 2010

The annual White Elephant Sale will be held Saturday and Sunday, May 29-30, 2010 at the Isleton Community Center, 210 Jackson Boulevard in Isleton.

The hours for the sale are 8AM-4PM on both May 29 and 30.

Browse the many items for sale contributed by various donors.

Pictures of Museum Opening and Chinese New Year are on the gallery!

Click the gallery link on this site for pictures of the 2010 Chinese New Year celebration and the grand opening of the latest interim site of the IBAHS museum.

Dignitaries such as Discover the Delta's Ken Scheidegger, Isleton Mayor Gene Resler, and acting Lieutenant Governor Mona F. Pasquil were in attendance for the museum grand opening. County Supervisor Don Nottoli made it to the Chinese New Year celebration.

General Meeting Saturday March 27th

The first quarterly meeting will be held Saturday, March 27 at 1PM at the interim museum at 33 Main Street. Guest speaker is IBAHS Vice President Lynda Maghoney Montano.

Lynda's presentation is "Roots in the Delta: The Filipino Experience" which is a little-known aspect of sociological inquiry.

Lynda was born and raised in "the Delta," and will share her photo display and life on the Filipino Farm Labor Camps, the labors of the Filipino Farmers and their presence in helping to establish "the Delta" as a major agricultural center in the 1920s, 30s, and 40s.

The photo displays may include cannery labels and Isleton Main Street of long ago. Refreshments will be provided. This is a FREE event, however, museum donations are very gladly welcome!

The Old Town News of the IBAHS for March 2010 is here!

The Old Town News of the IBAHS for March 2010 is here! Check it out by clicking this link:
OldTownNewsMar2010.PDF

Rio Vista Museum announces its website!

The Rio Vista Museum has launched its online presence according to Rio Vista Museum member Bob Bard. Check out Rio Vista Museum's website at http://www.riovistamuseum.com/.

New Board and Officers for 2009-2011

The general meeting November 7th also included the biannual board and officer elections. Here is the slate for 2009-2011:

President: Karen Franscioni
Vice-President: Lynda Montano
Secretary: Pamela Bulahan
Treasurer: Sharon Fong
Board Members: Charlene Andersson, Bill Cox, Virginia Catanio, Nick Catanio, and Pam Sweet.

The next scheduled board meeting is November 19th at Delta Daze Inn, 6PM.

General Meeting November 7th

The general meeting and board elections are on Saturday, November 7th, from 1-4 PM at the Delta Daze Inn lobby, 20 Main Street.

Please come and attend the meeting to submit your vote and get the latest updates on IBAHS activities and events.

For more information please email info@isletonhistory.org.

Main Street Walking Tours Now By Appointment Only

Previously the Main Street Walking Tours were on Third Saturdays. Due to inclement weather and for efficient resource allocation the Main Street Walking Tours are now only by appointment.

For more information or to schedule a Main Street Walking Tour, please email info@isletonhistory.org. Thank you in advance.

The Latest Old Town News of the IBAHS is here!

Here are the links to the latest issue of the Old Town News of the IBAHS.
The following is an upload of a Word or Works doc:
OldTownNews0909p1
OldTownNews0909p2

The following is an Adobe Acrobat scan:
OldTownIBAHS0909.PDF
Read and enjoy!

Walking Tours for the rest of 2009

Main Street walking tours are on the Third Saturday monthly at 2:30 or by appointment. Starting point for the walking tours is the River's Edge Cafe, 7 Main Street. Sharon Wong Fong is the docent for the tours.

For more information please email info@isletonhistory.org.

Bing Kong Tong Building

The correct name of the building on 29 Main Street is the Bing Kong Tong. Previous accounts of the building have stated Bing Kung Tong when in fact the deed does indeed state Bing Kong Tong. From now on the future permanent museum site is to be referred to as the Bing Kong Tong.

Photos of the Ice Cream Social and other Events are on the Photo Gallery!

Check out the photos of the Ice Cream Social and other past events of the IBAHS on our Gallery link on the website.