Disaster in the Devil’s Jaw (via Museum of Ventura County)

by Library Volunteer Andy Ludlum

One hundred years ago a tragic mix of poor judgment, navigational errors, irregular currents, and fog cost 23 sailors their lives.

Source: Museum of Ventura County

Good Intentions, Bad Outcomes: Ventura School for Girls (via Museum of Ventura County)

By Library Volunteer Andy Ludlum

Ventura residents were shocked in February 1921 when they read about girls rioting at the local state training…

Source: Museum of Ventura County

The Story of Pierre Agoure (via Museum of Ventura County)

By Library Volunteer Andy Ludlum

This is the story of an early Ventura County sheep rancher. His remarkable tale has been overlooked and almost lost over time.

Source: Museum of Ventura County

When Cars Came to Ventura County (via Museum of Ventura County)

By Library Volunteer Andy Ludlum

It was a stand-off worthy of the old Wild West. The taciturn lawman was face to face with a huffing, puffing adversary. Neither was ready to back down.

Source: Museum of Ventura County

The Water Witch of Simi (via Museum of Ventura County)

By Library Volunteer Andy Ludlum

The frail old man, known to everyone in Simi as “Grandpa Stones,” practically had to be carried over…

Source: Museum of Ventura County

Bootleggers, Rumrunners, and Blind-Piggers: Prohibition in Ventura County (via Museum of Ventura County)

By Library Volunteer Andy Ludlum

It was the opening day of duck season in October 1925. The last thing the hunters expected to bag along the shore east of Hueneme was dozens of 50-gallon barrels of pure alcohol…

Source: Museum of Ventura County

The House of the Angel (via Museum of Ventura County)

By Library Volunteer Andy Ludlum

When two pirate ships appeared off the California coast in November 1818, it was a moment the governor of the Royal Presidio of Monterey had been dreading for six weeks…

Source: Museum of Ventura County

Stolen Liberty (via Museum of Ventura County)

By Library Volunteer Andy Ludlum

The Sunday, December 7, 1941 edition of the Oxnard Press Courier ran a banner headline “FIRST WAR EXTRA” and described the surprise Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Wartime hysteria and long-simmering racial prejudice would lead to 120,000 people of Japanese descent losing their homes, farms, jobs, and businesses as they were forced to spend the next several years in desolate concentration camps….

Source: Museum of Ventura County