Historical & Pioneer Society Takes a Trip Back to the Past

The Historical and Pioneer Society of San Bernardino invited the public to join them on a trip back to the past this Saturday, Nov. 21, as they held their second annual Historic Tour event at the Mountain View Cemetery. At about 2 p.m. that afternoon, a myriad of community members gathered at the Mt. View Cemetery, grabbed their VIP lanyards, their popcorn, and took their seats on the trolley to prepare for an informational ride back in time. Throughout the tour, the trolleys filled with family members of historical people within San Bernardino’s past, along with curious community members eager to learn. Each stop was made at the graves of the people that have been an instrumental part of San Bernardino’s history. Nick Cataldo of the Historical and Pioneer Society hosted the tour, sharing historical facts about each of the people’s grave sites that everyone would stop to visit. According to Cataldo, “All of these people of the grave sites we will be seeing are pretty well-known and were very important to the area.” “This takes a long time to set up,” Linda Cataldo of the Historical and Pioneer Society shared. “It’s as packed this year as it was last year.” Clare Pope, the great-great granddaughter of John Charles Ralphs, one of the notable gravesites that were visited, attended the tour for the second time this year. “My family has long ties in San Bernardino,” Pope shared. Her great-great grandfather was the longest-serving Sheriff of San Bernardino County in the early 1900s. She brought a photo of him and a photo of many of her other family members that were taken in the early 1900s, as well. “He would track down outlaws in the desert, back when there weren’t any automobiles... like all that fun stuff you see in the movies,” she chuckled as she shared she also still has one of his rifles that he used. Throughout the tour, Pope also visited many of her other family members’ graves. “I have about 15 family members that are buried here,” she added. Pope, as well as family members of the other notable grave sites that were stopped at during the event, shared the stories of their loved ones that had passed. In the middle of the tour, everyone stopped for a quick snack and refreshments. The 24 stops included the graves of Dorothy Ingrham, Leland Norton, Swede Savage, Joseph Charles Rodriguez, Dr. Pittman, the Earp Family, Curtis Family, Frank Towne, Jack Brown, Andreson Mausoleum, Ben Barton, John Ralphs, William Billings, The Tower Building, Seccombe, Meyer, Allison Family, Perris, Swarthout, Tapout, Cataldo, Coussoulis Estate, Randy Rhoads, and Devlin.