GOLD RUSH! 1849 was the beginning of Gold Rush fever in California, but it took more than two decades before the fever hit the Campo Valley. The only known gold mine in the area used to be part of the property now known as Star Ranch. Though Julian became the more famous location for the southern California gold rush, Star Ranch had its own ‘mother lode’ or perhaps ‘baby sister lode’ might be the more accurate characterization. The mine, located east of the existing ranch house, operated from 1870 to 1874 and never produced anywhere near the $2 million in gold that the Julian mines produced. During that period, sheep ranching began to
dominate the valley; thus, replacing cattle ranching as the primary local source of income.

In 1869, 39-year old “Whispering John” G. Capron1, former mail carrier, famed army sergeant, Tucson merchant, and Arizona legislator, began the four to six horse stagecoach runs between San Diego and Ft. Yuma (then called Arizona City) operating once a week. By 1870, the Campo-San Diego Stage was established which followed Highway 94, operating three times a week. The stage left San Diego in the morning, changed horses in Dulzura, and rode to the station at the Gaskills’ store in Campo later that same day. These stages carried the mail as well as passengers. Mail and passengers arrived from the East Coast in only a few weeks, when it took months for them to arrive by steamer. Capron moved to San Diego and, in 1874, sold his San Diego to Yuma stage route. A section of the route is still visible south of the Gaskills’ Stone Store Museum adjacent to Star Ranch on SR94. Capron was known forvisiting the store on several occasions.

In 1874, Sam Houston Grumbles, a Civil War veteran of the Texas Infantry, moved to Campo Valley and acquired ownership of the property now known as Star Ranch. Sam was the son of a famous Texas Ranger, Captain John J. Grumbles, who fought warring Comanche’s at the famous Battle of Brushy Creek near Austin, Texas. The early Grumbles were renowned for throwing big Fourth of July celebrations with plenty of music and dancing in Austin. Sam was only 17 when his father was murdered. He took care of the family until they were grown and eventually moved to Campo at the age of 32.

Storekeepers, Silas and Lumen Gaskill built their first store of wood frame construction over Campo Creek and through a trap door, lowered perishables into the running water to keep them cool—a natural refrigerator. From last month’s article, we already know how many hats the Gaskill brothers wore. They were earning a sizeable income from all their various enterprises and always had a lot of cash on hand, which didn’t go unnoticed. On December 5, 1875, a gang of Mexican bandits came with horse drawn wagons from Tecate to rob the Gaskills’ store and fill those wagons. The brothers and a telegraph operator working at the store at the time
were tipped off before the assault; and, consequently, were able to conceal shotguns in preparation of an attack. When the raid came, six bandits fired at both Silas and Lumen. The brothers were wounded, but not seriously, before they were able to return fire. With a stroke of good luck, an employee of a local sheep rancher happened to be riding into Campo at the same time as the attack. He courageously joined in to help the clearly outnumbered Gaskills. Unfortunately, the brave man was killed in the ensuing gun battle, but not before seriously wounding the leader of the
gang.

Silas killed one of the bandits and wounded another. Lumen wounded two, and another escaped unhurt. Of the wounded, one bandit was later killed by his comrades because they felt his injury slowed them down; two were captured and hanged on a big oak tree in Campo; and, the leader died a year later from his sustained injury. The telegraph operator immediately wired the local newspaper (the San Diego Union was established seven years earlier) and word quickly circulated among other border outlaws that the Gaskills were “devils who couldn't be killed with lead bullets”. Alphonzo DeLafayette Grigsby took ownership of the Star Ranch property following Grumbles in 1877. At that time, the ranch was known as the “Cotton Wood Valley”. On-going fence line battles occurred between Grigsby and the local Kumeyaay Indians near the existing ranch house. The battles were known as the “Blue and Gray” wars. Grigsby and his wife had three children, Amos, Ellery, and Ivy. Records indicate that their children never married. Grigsby passes ownership of the Ranch to his son, Amos. Alphonzo Grigsby’s American ancestry can be traced to the early 1600’s when his great-great-great-great grandfather, Gentleman Thomas Grigbie emigrated from Kent, England to colonize Virginia.