H.W. (Wally) Trapnell - Lest We Forget – The Denizens of Carrville
and Coffee Creek Before the Damned Dam is a newly published
narrative. Wally Trapnell
came to Coffee Creek in 1948 and spent every summer
until 1971 when he bought the Coffee Creek Liquor Store
and lived here year round until 1976. Wally was a teacher
and administrator at Dunsmuir High School for 33 years
before retiring in 1993. Even though, up until now,
Wally has had only sporadic visits, he has never lost
touch with the area completely and he says "The draw
of the area has become too strong to ignore, and while
much has changed, the country is the same." He plans
to return on a full time basis.
In his Foreword, Wally wrote, "In the years after I first came to
Coffee Creek in the late 1940s, there lived, for varying lengths
of time and at various locations up and down the creek and at Carrville,
as unique a group of individuals as one would likely find anywhere
in the West." He says, "Before the names of these people are lost
forever, it seems like a good idea to record them and a little something
about them, as they all were part of Trinity County's history and
heritage."
Wally gives credit to Viola Karrer, her brother, Victor Maddox,
Mark Groves and Ken Collins for their help in completing this narrative
that takes you on a trip down memory lane, starting at Carrville
up to the head of Coffee Creek. The book may be purchased at the
Trinity Center Museum for $7.00. All proceeds from the book go to
the museum.