Over the past six years now I have traveled throughout the State
with a new perspective. Not like I used to… before I would
fly through little burgs and towns without taking a second look. I
have always traveled for work but never took the time to
“see” where I was going. I would hit a town do my work
and go back to the hotel and sit in my room clicking the clicker
until the wee hours of the morning.
Now, every new town I pass through is an awakening. I thrive on
the new treasures I see… monuments I have whizzed by a
hundred times in my life are now new nuggets of knowledge, vista
points I passed without a blink are postcard images burned in my
mind, and side streets of towns are secret treasures that only non
tourists find. Geocaching has made me stop and smell the roses. In
addition, in creating these puzzles and placing these caches it has
allowed me to meet new geocachers who help sponsor my caches in
their backyard.
Hopefully, this little puzzle will help enlighten you on the
County of Riverside and maybe make you “stop and smell the
roses” too.
N 33° 52.ABC
A = In 177(A), and again in 1778, Juan
Bautista de Anza, an army captain charged with discovering an
overland route from the Mexican state of Sonora to San Gabriel and
Los Angeles, passed through much of Riverside County and described
fertile valleys, lakes and sub-desert areas.
B = In July 199(B), Riverside County
hired Library Systems and Services, Inc., located in Germantown,
Maryland to operate its sprawling public library system. All
library employees, except for the county librarian, janitorial
service, and landscape maintenance, work for the private company.
It is the first library system in the nation that turned over its
entire operation to a private company
C = In the early 1980s, Riverside County
attempted to shut down small bingo halls operated by the Morongo
Band of Cahuilla Mission Indians and the Cabazon Band of Mission
Indians. The tribes joined forces and fought the county all the way
to the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled in the tribes' favor on
February 25, 198(C).
Checksum ABC = 20
W 117° 39.DEF
D = California State Historical Landmark No.
18(D) Serrano Tanning Vats has the following tidbit of
information: “Nearby, two vats were built in 1819 by the
Luiseño Indians under the direction of Leandro Serrano, first
non-Indian settler in what is now Riverside County. The vats were
used in making leather from cow hides. I n 1981 the vats were
restored and placed here by the Billy Holcomb Chapter of E Clampus
Vitus.”
E = Aguanga has a zip code in Riverside
County of 9253(E).
F = Riverside County was created from parts
of San Bernardino County and San Diego County and was officially
formed on May (F), 1893, when the Board of Commissioners
filed the final canvass of the votes.
Checksum DEF = 21
Some other interesting tidbits about Riverside
County:
The County Seat is the City of Riverside for Riverside
County.
The indigenous peoples of what is now Riverside County are
the Luiseño, Cupeño and Cahuilla Indians.
Riverside County has 12 federally-recognized Indian
reservations, which ties it with Sandoval County, New Mexico for
second most of any county in the United States.
Riverside County is the birthplace of lane markings, thanks
to Dr. June McCarroll, as well as modern Native American gaming
enterprises.
Riverside County, California is roughly the size of the State
of New Jersey in total area.
You can check your answers for this puzzle on
Geochecker.com.
I would like to thank BoydChicks for
being my sponsor for County Line – Riverside and for
tufbill for helping me Beta Test
this gem.
As always, enjoy.