Docent Training Saturday, August 24, 2013

Would you like to know more about early life in Allensworth?  Volunteering as a docent gives you a chance to fulfill that curiosity.  Volunteering as a docent gives you a chance to learn more about the town of Allensworth and the families that lived in this unique town.  You can also learn about the town's businesses; Hindsman General Store, Johnson Bakery, Mary Dickerson Memorial Library,  Milner Barber Shop, Grosse Drug Store, and Allensworth Hotel.

Volunteer as a Docent at Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park, and share your love of American history with park visitors.  Sharing what you learn about the families and businesses enriches the Allensworth experience for park visitors.  The more docents on hand at park events the more businesses and homes open to visitors.

Help us tell the Allensworth story.

The next docent training is:

When:    Saturday, August 24, 2013
Where:  Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park
Time:      9am to 4pm

To register or get more information contact State Park Interpreter I, Jerelyn Oliveira at (661) 849-4012 or Jerelyn.Oliveira@parks.ca.gov

Live Webcast of Commission Meetings

Today, the California Department of Parks and Recreation took a major step in fulfilling the first objective of Director Major General Anthony L. Jackson’s number one goal for Fiscal Year 2013-2014; to restore public trust and accountability by improving availability of information. Today the Department hosted a live webcast of the California State Park and Recreation Commission meeting.

The department plans to provide live webcasts of future Commission meetings. 

To view future live webcasts visit the cal-span website, where they are available in video, audio and webcast for smart phones.  If you missed the live webcast, you can view an archived video of the meeting at the cal-span website.

Founders Day

On this day in 1908 Colonel Allensworth's vision of California's first town founded, funded, and governed by African Americans begun to materialize.

The California Colony and Home Promoting Association filed the township site plan for Allensworth on August 8, 1908.  Filing of the site plan on August 8, 1908 signaled the official beginning of Allensworth, California.

Colonel Allensworth, William Payne, Dr. William Peck, J. W. Palmer and Harvey Mitchell incorporated the California Colony and Home Promoting Association and purchased a nine hundred acre tract of land at a Santa Fe railroad stop, about forty miles north of Bakersfield. On this tract of land rose a schoolhouse to nourish the mind, homes to nourish the body and a church to nourish the soul.

On this day, take five minutes to imagine the courage it took for those first families to take a bare piece of land and turn it into a town of independent self-respecting African Americans.  A town with a school, hotel, library, drugstore, barbershop, church and two general stores, all owned and run by African Americans.