Junior Members of the Jefferson State Insulator Club observed President's Day 2001 by hiking into the telegraphic history of southern Oregon.

Five Juniors, ages 11 to 17, hiked Stagecoach Pass near Glendale with two adult guides. The youngsters delighted in finding downed Postal Telegraph poles and broken Postal insulators.

When passing through some old growth timber, the Juniors were advised to look into the trees for signs of the Collins Overland Telegraph line. Amazingly, as they looked up at the closest tree, the remnants of a ramshorn insulator were clearly visible about 15 feet up.

David Banks climbed the tree to recover a 
mounting board for a ramshorn, which had 
been placed in the tree 137 years earlier.

The wood block containing the ramshorn had been nailed onto the mounting board with square nails. The mounting board, in turn, had been fastened to the tree with wooden pegs. 

The threadless telegraph line was built in 1864! No evidence of the ramshorn itself was found, even with a metal detector. 

Participating in the hike were David Banks, Christa Banks, Mariah McAlpine, Cody McAlpine and Josh McCarroll. Their guides were JSIC President Bill Ostrander and Vice-President Howard Banks.

Christa Banks shows off the day's find.