Creating Fiction from History

For many years, Frank and Harriet Jester had tried, God knows they had! In the late Spring of 1923, their patience was finally rewarded when little Charlotte Mae came into this world with hardly a peep. In fact, both Mother and Father would say that little Maisie was the best baby they'd ever had (ironic since she was their only child.)

Frank and Harriet were from opposite ends of the country. Harriet a New Jersey lady, while Frank was born into one of the original gold rush families, out of California. They met by happenstance in 1879, in Leadville, when Frank was working the Printer Boy mine, near Oro City. Harriet, who was a mere 15 years old at the time, was vacationing with her parents; her father held a stake in the Printer Boy and was checking on his investment.

While Harriet was a bit young, she made quite an impression on young Frank, who was just a bit older. Before her parents were able to whisk Harriet away back East, the two young lovers had promised themselves to one another. Two years later, Harriet received a ticket West on the Southern Pacific Railroad and the rest, as they say, is history!

Want to create fiction from history? Stop by the Ledger office and choose a photo from the Jefferson Valley Museum Archives to write a fictional story on.