Celebrating 75 Years!

Tags

history, lake tahoe, Thunderbird Yacht, Whittell Family, woody boats

This month we will be celebrating Thunderbird yacht’s 75th Anniversary.  Over the next few weeks I will be posting photographs of her various stages of ownership.  Enjoy!

The Beginning~

Thunderbird was designed by the legendary naval architect John L. Hacker and built at the Huskins Boat Works – Bay City, Mich.

Thunderbird under construction at Huskins Boat & Motor Works. TLPS Archives.

Thunderbird under construction at Huskins Boat & Motor Works. TLPS Archives.

Thunderbird under construction at Huskins Boat & Motor Works. TLPS Archives.

Thunderbird under construction at Huskins Boat & Motor Works. TLPS Archives.

Thunderbird under construction at Huskins Boat & Motor Works. TLPS Archives.

Thunderbird being prepared for her November, 1939, sea trials. TLPS Archives.

Thunderbird underway during her sea trials on the Saginaw River. TLPS Archives.

Thunderbird on the Saginaw River. TLPS Archives.

Second run on the Saginaw River. TLPS Archives.

Successful sea trial meant she was ready for fitting out and delivery. TLPS Archives.

She arrived and was launched on the lake July 15, 1940

Nevada State Journal, July 17, 1940

Delivery of the Thunderbird at Tahoe City. TLPS Archives.

Whittell and friends enjoyed her for several years

Thunderbird on Lake Tahoe, circa 1940-1941. TLPS Archives.

Thunderbird in front of the Lodge during Whittell’s 60th birthday celebration, September, 1941, from the Whittell films. TLPS Archives.

Interior view of the Thunderbird of unidentified passengers. Whittell Films, TLPS Archives.

Thunderbird underway during Whittell’s 60th birthday celebration, from the Whittell films. TLPS Archives.

Thunderbird underway during Whittell’s 60th birthday celebration, from the Whittell films. TLPS Archives.

George Whittell Jr. and guests celebrating his 60th birthday on Thunderbird. From the Whittell films. TLPS Archives.

Thundbird sitting in her cradle in the boathouse in the early sixties. Crane Family Collection, TLPS Archives.

Crane Family Collection, TLPS Archives.

But then she was forgotten and left to hang in the boathouse for many more…

Greetings from Thunderbird!

Sorry for the lack of posts recently!  In my constant thirst to be the best museum education professional possible, I have been working towards my Masters of Arts in Teaching, which means four months of student teaching.  Hence the blog has been neglected while I share my love of history with high school students.  But soon I will be back in the full swing of things at Thunderbird – and what a time to be back!  This year is the Thunderbird yacht’s 75th Anniversary!  Due to low water levels at Lake Tahoe, she will not be gracing the waters this year, but that does not mean she does not deserve a grand celebration! TLPS has a great deal of wonderful things lined up this summer to celebrate our beloved boat, so please check our website often for updates:  Thunderbird Lodge Lake Tahoe

I promise more amazing Thunderbird history to come soon!

The Thunderbird, 1962

Tags

glamour, san francisco history, tbt, thunderbird lodge, whittell

For today’s TBT, here are George and Elia’s cake toppers from their wedding! They are made of wood with the photographs attached.

George Whittell Jr. and Elia Pascal were married December 22, 1919 at  St. Paul’s Church in San Francisco.

Hope everyone has a wonderful Thursday!

– Jesse

Images from the Thunderbird Lodge Preservation Society collection

Flora Irene Whittell Wharry

Tags

san francisco history, thunderbird lodge, whittell, womenshistory

Florence (Flora) Irene Whittell Wharry (b. 1858, d. 1902)

One thing that is constant in George Whittell Jr.’s life is he was surrounded by fascinating women…including those in his own family.

Flora was George Whittell Jr.’s aunt and the youngest child of Hugh Whittell’s.  I cannot find very much about her, but from what I do know, is that she must have led an interesting life. 

Her husband, Dr. Charles John Wharry, graduated with an M.D. from Aberdeen University in 1873 and was a noted physician in Hong Kong. That is where the couple were living when Flora’s father passed away.  They left Hong Kong to make their home in London by 1890.  Their last documented journey to the United States was in 1895 from England to New York.   

Flora was the one who initially took the estate to court after Hugh Whittell’s death.  His estate had been divided between his three children and his widow, who was an entire 57 years younger than Hugh.  However, Flora was not arguing over what the young widow should receive, but rather over a wording technicality regarding the old Whittell homestead.  Flora won, but it made no difference in the distribution and it seemed that all parties got along rather well. 

Flora died at the age of 44 in 1902.  Charles lived another 28 years, passing in 1930.   There is no evidence that they had children, but there is more to Flora to be found!

–  Jesse 

It should be noted that her niece (Dr. Alexander Pope Whittell’s daughter) was named Florence Irene Whittell as well. 

Photograph from the Thunderbird Lodge Preservation Society collection.  Dated 1892, “Flora Whittell Wharry.”

Zebra Day

One of the most important tasks for any historic house museum is caring for the artifacts that help shape the stories we tell.  We know that George Whittell Jr. loved animals, but also loved to decorate with their pelts.  Today I cleaned, documented, and cataloged the zebra pelt we have on display.  This is not the original pelt owned by Whittell, but is part of our interpretive collection to help recreate the feel of the Lodge when he lived here.  Below is a picture of the interior including the original pelt.  That is followed by pictures of today’s pelt and work on it.

 – Jesse 

What’s in a name?

Tags

history, history mystery, middle names, tahoe history, thunderbird lodge, whittell

One of the biggest questions about George Whittell is about a little thing: his middle initial.  Or lack of.  Through reading the many newspaper articles about George Jr. along with court documents, wills, draft cards, and all sorts of other documents, I have not been able to find concrete evidence of George Jr. actually having a middle name.  Not one legal document I have found lists one.  Newspaper articles vary from the letter N. to C. and P., F., B., and S. In fact, finding any early records, including a birth certificate has been difficult, which is not uncommon given that many women still birthed at home in the late 1800s.

So this is an ongoing question that calls for more research! 

Attached are some documents for you to see for yourself, it is not clear!  Included  is an article on his first society engagement showing his initial as F., to his WW2 draft card that clearly has a dash where a middle initial goes, to passport applications with nothing.  What do you think?

– Jesse 

This gallery contains 3 photos.

Throwback Thursday! As requested, here are some great photographs from the Thunderbird Lodge Preservation Society Collection.  The first two are …

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This gallery contains 2 photos.

Jesse here…sorry the blog is slow, but we have been really busy around here with our big order of archival …

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Family Friday

While George Jr. was an only child (his twin brother Nicholas died at age 4 from diphtheria), he was surrounded by cousins and other extended family.  Part of the challenge we have here at the Thunderbird Lodge Preservation Society is trying to identify all the people that show up in pictures with George (seen here on the far left).  

 

Photo courtesy of the Thunderbird Lodge Preservation Society Collection

Tags

ironwork, tahoe history, thunderbird lodge, whittell

This gallery contains 3 photos.

Today we were honored to have Larry Soletti visit us at Thunderbird Lodge Lake Tahoe.  His father, Antonio Soletti, was …

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