HONORING OUR BLACK FORBEARS

By Bobbi Zane

Valorie Ashley has a dream.

The owner of Julian’s Villa de Valor bed and breakfast would like the town to honor its African-American forebears with a monument in the cemetery.

“Black people had very important roles in the founding of Julian,” she asserted, “going all the way back to Fred Coleman, who found a chunk of gold in the creek that runs behind Spencer Valley School in the winter of 1869-1870.”

Coleman’s find launched the gold rush that marked Julian’s first 30 years. His discovery preceded those of the Bailey family by a few weeks or months, although the Baileys were able to benefit from the gold rush by digging mines into the quartz-laden hillsides surrounding the town they named Julian.

According to local historian Leland Fetzer, Coleman was a 41-year-old native of Kentucky who had been living in the Volcan area at least since the early 1860s, according to county records the author was able to find.

“As early as 1863, he appeared on the County Assessment List as the owner of $245 in livestock,” Fetzer said.

Historians say Coleman organized the first gold camp and tent city alongside the creek in what is now Wynola; it was called Coleman Mining District. He also operated a toll road along what is now Hwy. 78/79.

Coleman’s name appears on local landmarks, Coleman Creek Village and Coleman Creek. “His name is cited in many histories of Julian,” Ashley said, “with no mention of his heritage, so very few people know that he was a black man.

“When I moved to Julian,” Ashley added, “I didn’t know Fred Coleman was an African-American or that he was a central figure in Julian’s rich multicultural history. I’m from the Midwest and am proud that my African-American heritage is linked to the history of the town where I’ve settled and opened my business.”

Ashley would like to see Coleman, along with other important African-Americans such as laundress America Newton and the Robinsons, recognized for their roles in Julian’s history.

“Albert and Margaret Robinson, who founded and operated what is now the Julian Hotel, are well known for their contribution to the town,” she said.

In light of this, Ashley’s vision is to recognize Julian’s black pioneers with a monument in the cemetery.

“As far as I know, no one is sure where they were buried, because many records were lost in a fire. But we know that some of them are there,” Ashley said. “The cemetery could set aside some space and install a monument similar to the one that’s already there for the many babies who died one year. It would list the names of these black pioneers and their accomplishments, ensuring that the black history of Julian would live forever.”

Ashley owns the Villa de Valor Bed and Breakfast at the Hildreth House, a historic site. Her Web site is www.VilladeValor.com.

Leland Fetzer is the author of “A Good Camp: Gold Mines of Julian and the Cuyamacas,” from Sunbelt Publications, San Diego.