Civil War Soldier Settles in Big Pine

Immediately following the Civil War, contingents of northern soldiers were sent west. Herman Frederick Uhlmeyer was one of these soldiers. He was mustered out at Mariposa, where he panned for gold until he made his "stake". From there he came to the Owens Valley, first settling in Independence then in 1874, he went to Big Pine and bought land from the Government. On this property he built a house about a mile north of Big Pine. He began reclaiming his land for farming and cattle raising. Fred never married, so in 1885 he wrote a letter to his nephew, William Henry Uhlmeyer in St. Louis, to come at once because he was ill with pneumonia. Will left St. Louis crossed the continent to Reno by the transcontinental train, then took the narrow gauge down to Alford, the station for Big Pine. When he arrived, his Uncle Fred had died. Excerpt from, "Saga of Inyo County" published in 1977

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/224028528/herman-frederick-uhlmeyer