HISTORY
In 1855, Sam and Harry Baechtel drove cattle
from Marin County to find grazing land and came upon a valley that met
their requirements. The brothers were the first non-native settlers here,
although in 1853 A.E. Sherwood had settled Sherwood Valley, 10 miles
to the Northwest. Referring to Sam Baechtels notebook: "The valley has
a large watershed and during our rainy seasons the water collects more
rapidly than the outlet can carry it off, consequently it forms a lake
in its Northern end which is usually drained off by May." Some think
that's why the valley is called the Little Lake. Some others attribute
the name to the little lake which is found in the Southern end of the
valley.
Sam Baechtel wrote that there were about 300 Native
Americans who shared the valley, dividing it North and South. Apparently
the Baechtels got along well with the Indians because a later generation
remembered Indians working on the Baechtels ranch and that there was
an Indian sweat house located across the road from the Baechtel house.
Some of the earliest settlers had worked their way
through the mines and were now looking for land. In 1860 William James
built the first grist mill in the valley and, about the same time,
the Blosser brothers built a water powered sawmill up Willits creek.
The town of Little Lake sprung up on Baechtel land and consisted of
a store, a meeting house, blacksmith shop and a saloon. In 1865 Kirk
Brier built a store to the North on Hiram Willit's land, and the town
of Willitsville grew around it.
The settlers were growing their own produce, raising
their own meats, fruits and potatoes. The local mercantile provided
other necessities. At the end of the 1860's they were connected to
other towns by way of a stageline.
Willitsville incorporated in 1888 with a growing
population of 720 and called itself, Willits. Lumbering and farming
teamed as a strong force in the local economy. These industries remain
an important part of today's economy of Willits.
The Northwestern Railroad continued to Willits in
1901 followed by the "Skunk" trains 10 years after. Northwestern finished
the line to Eureka in 1914 putting Willits at the center of the line
reaching from San Francisco to Eureka.
Information courtesy of the Willits Chamber of Commerce |
