For 100 years, newspapers in Three Rivers have come and
gone sporadically as many have attempted the difficult task of meeting
an ongoing weekly deadline while earning a viable living in a small community.
John and Sarah Elliott recognized the potential and necessity of a weekly
newspaper in Three Rivers and purchased the Sequoia Sentinel. Prior to
the first issue on March 1, 1995, John and Sarah changed the name of the
newspaper to The Kaweah Commonwealth in honor of the first newspaper published
in area and as a salute to the rich history of the region.
"In early 1995, we were searching through an index
of hundreds of nineteen-century newspapers trying to come across something
that might make a historical connection with Three Rivers," recalled
John Elliott, TKC co-owner/publisher with his wife, Sarah." Then,
just a few weeks before we were scheduled to officially take the reins
of the Sequoia Sentinel, there it was among copies of the original Commonwealth
that had been compiled by our friend, Jay O'Connell, for research of what
would eventually become a local history book."
Since then, the couple has combined their talents of writing,
photography, editing, sales and marketing, and graphic layout and design
to develop an original, provocative, and graphically-pleasing newspaper
for the community. Their teamwork has led to a successful venture in independent
publishing. They enjoy having the opportunity to be creative with their
stories, photos, page design, features, and issues.
The newspaper's masthead and its straightforward black-and-white
style still have appeal for a discriminating reader looking for something
stimulating in a weekly newspaper of today. To reflect a more regional
appeal, Jana Botkin, a Three Rivers artist, adapted two of the three panels
in the original masthead. Now it communicates on the front page of every
issue the Sherman Tree or what the colonists called the "Karl Marx
Tree," and a stunning view of Alta Peak from Lake Kaweah. The latter
scene reflects the heart of the modern newspaper's coverage area - Kaweah
Country. The first panel is carried over from the original Kaweah Commonwealth
and is a sketch of Burnette G. Haskell, the Kaweah
Colony's founder, in
front of his North Fork cabin.
JOHN ELLIOTT was raised in Cleveland, Ohio, and attended
college in Miami, Fla. After graduating from Florida International University
in 1978 with a B.A. in history, he moved west to Southern California.
He discovered Kaweah Country in 1986 while working for the Mineral King
Preservation Society, preparing a National Register of Historic Places
application for the cabins, road, and mines in that area of Sequoia National
Park.
Following more than two decades in public history projects
working primarily in cultural resource management, Elliott now devotes
his career to documenting the people, places, and events of Kaweah Country.
His "Making History" columns have received local acclaim for
looking at events and issues of the present with a unique historical perspective.
SARAH BARTON ELLIOTT is a fifth-generation Three Rivers
resident. She has had a love affair with writing and the English language
her entire life. Her ancestors, who settled in Three Rivers in the 1870s,
include several writers and a newspaper publisher, as well as cattlemen,
citrus ranchers, miners, and lumbermen. Place names in the area recognize
the contributions of the Barton family (Barton Mountain, Stephen Barton
Point, Barton Peak, Barton Creek). It is with pride that she carries on
the legacy of her family in Three Rivers while raising the sixth generation
of Bartons in that community. |
