Time and time again, ranchers have shown they are versatile and multifaceted in their skills and abilities.
Siskiyou County ranchers, Michelle Gough and William Simpson at Wild Horse Ranch locally filmed and produced a music video that has been honored by several film and music festivals by being ‘Officially Selected’ and even winning the top honor at one Film Festival.
This music video celebrates the natural beauty and history of our County.
According to the doctoral *dissertation by Dr. Yvette ‘Running Horse’ Collin, in 1580, British explorer Sir Francis Drake explored the Pacific coast along the Oregon-California border and inland regions.
*https://scholarworks.alaska.edu/handle/11122/7592
Drake and his team recorded seeing the local indigenous peoples living alongside wild horses along the OR-CA border.
To put that into proper historic perspective, Christopher Columbus had first discovered North America in 1492, just 88-years earlier.
There is no plausible way that in just 88-years, the Spaniards could have imported enough horses, and then of those, having enough escape, to then breed into tens of thousands and then be distributed across the entire North American continent with enough distribution to be living on the OR-CA border. That is a fiction.
According to a discussion that William Simpson had with Professor and geneticist Gus Cothran at Texas A&M University, it is not an unreasonable assumption that splinter populations of wild horses survived the Ice Age and were located in isolated herds in our region. In fact, there are horse fossils found in Oregon and Northern California.
The award-winning music video ‘We Are the Wild Horses’ celebrates our local natural history, which was further documented by the local famous cowboy, George F. Wright who was born in Hornbrook, CA in 1897, was a BLM range rider and Jackson County Deputy Sheriff… George’s parents, Thomas Jefferson Wright and his indigenous bride settled in Hornbrook, CA in 1851. Thomas had several sons, including George who settled along the tributaries of the Klamath River, along Scotch Creek, Camp Creek and Jenny Creek. George Wright maintained a diary that frequently mentions ‘wild horses’ living naturally in the region.
More about George F. Wright here: https://sierranevadaally.org/2022/04/04/the-american-heritage-of-wild-horses/

- FERC Response to KRRC ‘re’ Request to Start Drawdown January 2024This is also about continued blasting process and its use to remove Copco 1. FERC is still acting as though KRRC is a responsible agent even though they continue to cut corners. I would hope that our Board of Supervisors would insist on having an evaluation by an outside expert for the County’s benefit to… Read more: FERC Response to KRRC ‘re’ Request to Start Drawdown January 2024
- Wild Horses Coevolved with Wildfire on The North American LandscapeScience and empirical experience suggest the proper management of wild horses benefits public lands, ranchers and mitigates wildfire Paleontological science and DNA studies have proven that all horses in the world originally evolved on the north American continent millions of years ago. About 1-million years ago, during the time there was a land bridge… Read more: Wild Horses Coevolved with Wildfire on The North American Landscape
- Various Cemetery District Vacancies terms ending in 2028Laura Bynum, Clerk of The Board of Supervisors announces that there are scheduled vacancies on various Cemetery Districts for terms ending January 3, 2028 as follows: Etna Cemetery – 2 vacancies Fort Jones Cemetery – 2 vacancies Happy Camp Cemetery – 2 vacancies Henley-Hornbrook Cemetery – 3 vacancies Lakeview Cemetery – 1 vacancy Picard Cemetery… Read more: Various Cemetery District Vacancies terms ending in 2028
- Siskiyou Land Trust invites you to an evening slideshow: “So Far… Nature Stories and Photos,” by Mount Shasta local Mike HuppThursday, December 77:00 PMMt Shasta Sisson Museum Join us on a visual journey with Mike Hupp as he shares his favorite images and rich natural history from the rivers and open spaces of the American west to the rainforests and rugged coast of Tasmania. Through his photographs, he’ll showcase starry night skies, sublime landscapes, and… Read more: Siskiyou Land Trust invites you to an evening slideshow: “So Far… Nature Stories and Photos,” by Mount Shasta local Mike Hupp
- Brenda Jean MoweryNovember 19, 1968 – November 20, 2023 Brenda Mowery Obituary 55 year old Yreka resident, Brenda Jean Mowery, passed away on November 20, 2023 at Fairchild Medical Center. Brenda was born November 19, 1968 in Oregon to Jim and Linda Carlson. Brenda worked for years as a migrant working, traveling constantly to wherever the work took her… Read more: Brenda Jean Mowery
Thank you