Have you ever been let down or even betrayed by someone you trusted? How did you respond and did it differ from how Scripture instructs us to respond? This is the major theme of my interquel novella Cakes and Kisses. So when I discovered the following event described in the June 9, 1854 edition of the Daily Alta California I knew it was perfect for my story.
“Another Squatter Disturbance — At a squatter disturbance, which occurred yesterday morning on Front street below Mission, a woman who lived in a house which a party were endeavoring to take down, became so incensed that she laid her baby down, picked up a shovel, and attacked Capt. Folsom. After she was disarmed of this weapon she went into the house and brought out a revolver, with which she endeavored to shoot the same party. The police interfered and prevented the woman from doing harm.” [spelling, punctuation, and capitalization have been maintained from the original article]
During my research I have encountered many similar “squatter riots” or “disturbances,” as the newspapers referred to them, but this one caught my attention because of the lone woman and child facing a group of men determined to see her homeless. Not only did it closely parallel the essence of the situation my heroine found herself in, it brought to mind the numerous accounts I have read of women being abandoned in San Francisco by husbands who headed for the gold fields—sometimes never to be heard from again. While some of these women were widowed by the harsh mining conditions, others were permanently abandoned by husbands who found themselves weary of being married. These women faced the daunting challenge of learning to survive in a burgeoning town fraught with criminal activity, an insufficient police force, and a frequently corrupt justice system.
Daily Alta California, November 22, 1851 — …the present police force is not sufficiently large to guard effectually against the commission of crime…
Daily Alta California, February 24, 1854 — …we think the force is scarcely sufficient, that our growing city demands a larger one…
All of this dark history fit well with my theme.
However, not all of San Francisco’s history is dark and gloomy. One of my favorite parts of the city’s history involves the world famous Ghirardelli Chocolate Company. No doubt you’ve seen Ghirardelli chocolates in your local store and may even have received a Ghirardelli chocolate or two in your Christmas stocking. What you may not know is that the Ghirardelli Chocolate Company has been around since the nineteenth century and was founded in San Francisco, California, by Domingo Ghirardelli.
Born in 1817 Rapallo, Italy, as Domenico Ghirardelli, he apprenticed with a local candy maker at a young age. He later sailed to Uruguay with his wife to work in a chocolate and coffee business and changed his Italian first name to the Spanish equivalent, Domingo. In 1847 Ghirardelli was operating a store in Peru when his neighbor, James Lick, moved to San Francisco, bringing with him 600 pounds of Ghirardelli’s chocolate.
Like many men, Ghirardelli left his family behind to join the rush of 1849 and seek gold among California’s hills. Not long after arriving, he gave up prospecting and opened a tent-based general store in Stockton, California where he offered supplies as well as confections to minors. In 1850 he opened a second store in San Francisco but in 1851 both stores burned to the ground.
Demonstrating incredible resilience, Ghirardelli used what he had left to open the Cairo Coffee House in San Francisco. Unfortunately his coffee house proved unsuccessful. So he acquired a partner and opened a new store named “Ghirardelli and Girard,” again in San Francisco. This store did well enough that by 1851 Ghirardelli was able to send for his family to join him in California. In 1852, the company changed its name “D. Ghirardelli & Co. “ and was incorporated. It has been in continuous operation ever since—eventually becoming the modern-day Ghirardelli Chocolate Company.
I’ve been fascinated by this sweet part of San Francisco’s history for more than two decades, so incorporating Ghirardelli’s chocolate and his San Francisco store into my novella, Cakes and Kisses, was a piece of cake. (I couldn’t resist.)
Cakes and Kisses (~49,000 words) releases December 1, 2022 and will be available for FREE to my newsletter subscribers for thirty days. After which, it will be available for purchase through Amazon. Click here to subscribe!
***Giveaway***
To win an ebook copy of my debut novel, Waltz in the Wilderness, (which introduces the heroine of Cakes and Kisses), leave a comment below letting me know which type of chocolate you prefer.
NOTE: All newspaper quotes used in this post are in the public domain and were found at: California Digital Newspaper Collection, Center for Bibliographic Studies and Research, University of California, Riverside, <http://cdnc.ucr.edu>.
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I prefer milk chocolate, but I also like dark chocolate. Very interesting story about how Ghirardelli chocolates came about.
I’m so glad you enjoyed learning about Ghirardelli. Thanks for commenting!
I like both dark and milk. Nice historical information.
I’m glad you enjoyed learning about this part of history. Thanks for stopping by.
Definitely a good, smooth milk chocolate! Thanks!
Me to. 🙂 Thanks for commenting.
I enjoy milk chocolate,white chocolate and chocolate with peppermint at Christmas, preferably Ghirardelli chocolate, love them. Thanks for the fun facts about Ghirardelli chocolate, I’m going to show my daughter, she loves them too. It’s a tradition that I get her Ghirardelli peppermint chocolate for Christmas every year.
What a fun tradition! I hope she enjoys learning about the history behind the chocolate. Thanks for your comment.
I Like dark chocolate. thanks for the great post.
So glad you enjoyed it! 🙂 Thank you for commenting.
I really enjoy white chocolate as well as milk chocolate!!
My eldest son is a fan of white chocolate. He especially loves the Oreo chocolate bars. Have you tried those?
Dark chocolate the darker the better.
Ha. My husband loves a good dark chocolate as well. Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
I love dark chocolate. Milk chocolate, too. Ghirardelli is a favorite brand.
Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment. Was the history about Ghirardelli new information to you?
Some of it was, thank you. I enjoyed learning more about it.
I like milk chocolate, white chocolate, and dark chocolate in that order.
I can see you’ve given this a lot of thought. It’s good you have your chocolate priorities in order. 😉
Dark chocolate is my favorite, and I love Ghirardelli chocolates!!!
Dark chocolate is my husband’s favorite as well. Were you familiar with the history of Ghirardelli before this post?
Only the little bit on the package, as I read those!! I read the labels on the gas pumps while pumping gas, too! lol!!
What an interesting blog. I loved the pictures too. I enjoy Belgium chocolates. But, in general, any milk chocolate will entice me.
I’m so glad you enjoyed my post. Thank you for sharing your thoughts. Have you ever tried Swiss chocolate? When I was sixteen I was able to travel in Europe a bit and tried Swiss chocolate in Switzerland. I’m afraid it was a bit too sophisticated for me. My husband says I have cheap tastes when it comes to chocolate. LOL
Woops! I meant to say 15. I traveled to Europe when I was 15.
I don’t think I have tried Swiss chocolate. Only in hot cocoa – Swiss Miss. Ha!
Dark chocolate is my favorite! Although white is nice and milk too when its coating a peanut butter cup. YUM
Ahh. Yes, Reeses peanut butter cups are one of my favorite treats. 🙂 Have you tried Ghirardelli’s dark chocolate?
I Love Utah truffles. So delicious and smooth.
I don’t believe I have ever tried those. I will have to add them to my list of foods to try. Thanks for the suggestion.
I love most all chocolate!!
Do you have a favorite brand of chocolate?
I like milk and dark chocolate with almonds.
How do you feel about Almond Joy?
I am a choco-o-holic. My after dinner treat each night is 1-2 pieces of 85-90% chocolate as it is supposed to be good for the heart, so my husband keeps telling me. Your book sounds like it will be sweet and delightful yummy as it will probably be ‘melt in the mouth’ good! Have a blessed day..
My husband is also a fan of chocolate with a high percentage of cacao. Ha ha. Thank you for your kind words about my story. 🙂
I like milk chocolate and dark chocolate with almonds. I usually eat dark chocolate as it is better for me as I am diabetic.
Well, I am glad you are able to enjoy chocolate without compromising your health. A close friend of mine has a son with type I diabetes so I know, to some degree, how difficult that road can be. Thanks for leaving a comment. 🙂
Welcome. Thanks for sharing this wonderful history. I love chocolate with caramel and sea salt.Lindt/Lindor. But since I am diabetic I limit my intake
quilting dash lady at comcast dot net
Hi Lori. You share a name with my mother. Thanks for the warm welcome. I’m glad you enjoyed my post.
I prefer dark chocolate but ‘in an emergency’ milk will do as well… 🙂
Ha ha. Yes, we must be prepared for those chocolate emergencies. Thanks for stopping by.
What an incredible story you gave us. I love history and this was awesome.
I love both milk and dark, oh I might as well say, I LOVE CHOCOLATE.
I’m so glad you enjoyed my post. And yes, I love chocolate as well. Probably a little too much. 😉
I prefer milk chocolate but it has to have some nuts or something in it. I really love the Rocher Ferrero chocolates, I also like the Cadbury nut and fruit chocolates. Now, my husband will eat the 95 or 80 percent chocolates.
Let’s do add that extra bit of crunch to good chocolate. I have not tried the Cadbury very nut and fruit chocolate but you have me curious. Is there a particular one you recommend I try first?
any kind
I guess that makes you easy to please. 😉 Thanks for stopping by.
Thank you for the interesting bit of history. We were by the Ghirardelli facility in San Francisco years ago, but had little ones with us so didn’t take the tour. I don’t know if they still give tours, but if we get back out that way again, we will definitely go. As for chocolate favorites, I like most kinds. I like dark chocolate up to a point. Some is a bit too bitter and the Mexican chocolate with hot pepper in it is a bit too much.
I haven’t been to the current facility myself, but I’d love to take a tour. Thanks for commenting. 🙂
I prefer milk chocolate. Thank you so much for sharing. God bless you.
Thank you so much for stopping by! 🙂
I love any good chocolate candy as long as it isn’t bitter! I sure enjoyed your article and pictures. The book sounds very interesting, too! Almond joy used to be my favorite candy bar, then a few years ago I realized that I sure was loving Reese’s peanut butter cups! I’ve had to have a no candy in the house rule because it was making me too fat and because my hubby is a diabetic…He did buy me a bag of peanut M&M’s several months ago, and they’ve been in my refrigerator ever since he bought them. Thank you so much for joining P&P today. You’re a new author to me and I signed up for your newsletter!
Any kind Tobler’s my favorite
I like semi-sweet and milk chocolate.
I start my day with Nestle chocolate chips.