News

On August 24th, the Society held a bottle digging display and discussion event lead by local bottle digger Tom Quinn. BHS Board Member, Terence Bennett, and his wife, Brenda Crabtree, hosted the event in the lovely backyard of their historic home where Tom had done a privy dig last year. Tom has been exploring privies and digging for bottles in Benicia's historic backyards for 46 years. Tom displayed and shared stories about bottles  and other artifacts from the period of 1847 to about 1880. He researches where the bottles were made, what they contained, and how they might have made their way to Benicia. The Society looks forward to hosting more events like this for members.

Twenty five members of the Society traveled by Amtrak to the California State Railroad Museum in Old Sacramento on July 20th. We were welcomed warmly as delegates from Benicia to learn about the new exhibit and model of the Solano Train Ferry. We were treated to a free, private museum tour and a short lecture on the history of railroading in the western U.S. Benicia played a key role in that history as the Solano Train Ferry home port. The ferry was the largest train ferry in the world and ran for fifty years. Members enjoyed lunch together afterward. A huge thank you to the Museum staff!