Inland Empire Community Newspapers • April 11, 2013 • Page A3
E Clampus Vitus comprised of fun loving historians who mark local sitesBy Harvey M. Kahn
The last of the all-male fra-ternal organizations stillthrives in the Inland Em-
pire in the form of the 160-yearold E Clampus Vitus. Its missionis to document and preserve loca-tions of Western historical signif-icance. Its image is that of a largegroup of law-abiding, rebelliouspartyers. An article in the NewYork Times good naturedlyquoted, "That E Clampus Vitus iscomprised of renegades, manywho were not eligible for mem-bership into other orders, yet tookto Clampurs like a duck to water.Every members holds an office ofequal indignity."
There are 42 E ClampusVitus chapters in eight states. TheBilly Holcomb chapter started in1969 to serve San Bernardino andRiverside Counties. It numbers400 members and will initiate an-other 50 in May. On May 4, theBilly Holcomb Chapter will doc-ument its 190th historic site inSan Bernardino County when itinstalls the last of its bronze alloyplaques at Camp Cady near Cal-ico. They will start using a lessexpensive substance because 15of their bronze plaques have beenstolen.
"We try to find historic sitesaway from populated areas due tothe noise we can make. OurClampouts can draw 400 people,"said Bill Pearson, a E ClampusVitus member since 1976."Party's can last until midnight.We stay away from the city."Pearson acknowledged that"Clampurs" are mostly noncon-formists, however the Billy Hol-comb chapter is now consideredthe most professional. "It is one ofthe issues that we have looked at.How are we to be a crediblesource if we are known as a groupof drinkers," said Pearson, 71. Hesaid the group once paid for allthe beer at functions; now every-one buys there own. "We would
go through 100 cases of beer in ahurry. There weren't as manyproblems once everyone paid fortheir own," said Pearson, a formerE Clampus Vitus President, or asthey say the ex-grand NobelHumbug.
Pearson played an active rolefor the E Clampus Vitus projectof posting memorial plaques atformer sites of General GeorgePatton's Desert Training Centerthat spanned from Baker to Yumaand inland from Pomona to PalmSprings, to the Mexican border.He said others honored sites in-clude: the Taylor's Ferry that oncecrossed the Colorado River; theBear Valley Dam; Wyatt Earp's
home; Zzyzx Mineral Springs;Baker's giant thermometer; andthe former Federal Rabbit Exper-imentation Lab in Fontana. Some-times the various E ClampusVitus groups work together, othertimes they work with state histor-ical preservation officials and theBureau of Land Management.
The Billy Holcomb chaptergets its name from the gold min-ing pioneering family from the1840's and whose ancestry con-tinued into the recent eras. Thefamily had a few San BernardinoMayor's such as the late Bob Hol-comb. Grant Holcomb was one ofthe first TV reporters. Other al-leged Clampus members of note
were Ronald Reagan, UlyssesGrant, Gene Autry, Horace Gree-ley, and Horatio Alger. Pearsonsaid the local chapter coversevery gamut, from dentists,lawyers, professors, and business-men. "We have one member whocan't read," said Pearson.
"We welcome everyone.There are no constraints. Youmust be a male and be 21," saidSid Blumner, the last remainingactive charter member of the BillyHolcomb Chapter. Blumner is aretired history professor from CalPoly Pomona. He explained thatE Clampus Vitus has ancestralroots that could come from a sim-ilar colonial group from West
Virginia. Blumner said much ofthe Clampus history was lostwhen the group folded around1900. "It has now been revitalizedand our future looks good. Ouraverage age is 35, so we havepeople that will continue to do ourgood works," said Blumner.
He said he enjoys the fellow-ship of other historians who liketo have fun. Blumner said that EClampus Vitus holds five eventsper year, not including scholar-ship fundraiser's and "work par-ties" that help people rehab theirhomes. They will hold their an-nual Grand Council meeting inSonora, Ca on May 17-19. "Wedon't recruit, nor advertise. Peo-ple see our plaques and othershear about us through friends."
Dave McCammack has beenan E Clampus Vitus member formore than 40 years. He describesthe group as three-fourths historicpreservation and the rest com-radery among "the guys you getto see about once a year." Mc-Cammack recalled former Gov.Grey Davis attending the celebra-tion of the giant thermometer inBaker. "It was so hot that Davisgot out of his helicopter andquickly left because of the heat."McCammack noted other EClampus Vitus sites like the New-berry Springs Loading Station,where steam engines loaded withwater; and the Howard HughesDome and the Rocks of LucerneValley.
Marty Romeo calls himself a"rookie" member of the Clampusgroup. He defines the group ashistorians who party in the desertand are environmentally sensi-tive. "Camps are cleaner when weleave than before we go there,"said Romeo, who was there whenthey placed a plaque at the Camelof the West Station at Laughlin,where camels were used for trans-port before trains. "It's good his-tory stuff. Great guys. Wild, butcharitable. It's unbelievable," saidRomeo.
PHOTO COURTESY/PETER LEBECK CHAPTER PHOTO
The 1890's Ransburg-Mojave Road, the main route for mule team gold and silver transports.Its2006 dedication was attended by 1,200 E Clampus Vitus members from California, Arizona, andNevada.
Insectival at the County Museum
Visitors of all ages can takea hands-on journey intothe world of bugs at the
San Bernardino County Museumduring Insectival on Saturday, April13 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. All Insec-tival activities are included with paidmuseum general admission.Explore the fascinating world ofarthropods—insects, arachnids,myriapods, and more. Family funactivities include insect games, take-home creepy-crawly craft creations,Believe It or Not bugs trivia, insectstories and activities, and live insectencounters in the museum’s court-yard and Exploration Station. Alarge variety of snacks and mealswill be on sale all day by the “BestHot Dog Ever” food vendor.“Insectival is one of our most pop-ular family events,” said CarlaRosenkild, museum educator.“Children and adults all enjoy thecompany of creatures such as ourAustralian leaf insects. Spiders arealways a big hit, and you certainlydon’t want to miss meeting Rosy thetarantula.”In addition to ongoing bug activi-ties, presentations are scheduledthroughout the day (although sched-ules and events are subject to changedepending upon the mood of the in-sects involved).All About Bugs, 10:30, 12:30,2:00, 3:00. Learn what it takes to bean insect, an arachnid, or other kinds
of bugs. Meet some live bugs upclose and personal. Presented bySan Bernardino County MuseumEducators (good for all ages)Cockroach Races! 11:00, noon,2:00, 3:00, 4:00. Which Madagascarhissing cockroach will win!Read-A-Bug 10:30, 11:30, 1:30,2:30, 3:30. Join us for some wildreading adventures. Bugs make ap-pearances as literary heroes withsome exciting new titles and someperennial favorites. Related move-ment and observation activities helpround out the experience.The San Bernardino County Mu-seum is at the California Street exitfrom Interstate 10 in Redlands. Themuseum is open Tuesdays throughSundays from 9 am to 5pm. Generaladmission is $8 (adult), $6 (militaryor senior), $5 (student), and $4(child aged 5 to 12). Children underfive and Museum Association mem-bers are admitted free. Parking isfree. For more information, visitwww.sbcountymuseum.org. Themuseum is accessible to personswith disabilities. If assistive listeningdevices or other auxiliary aids areneeded in order to participate in mu-seum exhibits or programs, requestsshould be made through MuseumVisitor Services at least three busi-ness days prior to your visit. VisitorServices’ telephone number is 909-307-2669 ext. 229 or (TDD) 909-792-1462.
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