The William J. Paugh House, also known as Rosewall, is a very pure example of a Gothic Revival House. The style was most popular during the 1840's and 1850's. It was built in the late 1850's by Charles L. Parish, artist, architect and builder.
According to Parish family lore, Charles was in love with a local school teacher and built the house to encourage her to marry him. When he was unable to win her hand in marriage, he decided to hold a raffle, in which the house would be the first prize. In 1860 and the first few months of 1861 he sold 8,650 tickets throughout the state for "The Charles L. Parish Gift and Musical Entertainment Raffle". Large advertisementsfor the raffle, listing the price of $1.00 per ticket,appeared in the Amador Ledger-Dispatch and the Sacramento Union.
The raffle was won by Dr. William J. Paugh, who at the time was Amador County's second Sheriff, the first having been killed in the famous "Rancheria Massacre". The Paugh family lived in the house until 1870, at which time they sold it to George Snowden Andrews, Jackson Wells Fargo agent from 1857 to 1875. The family then moved to San Francisco, where Dr. Paugh practiced medicine until his death in 1901.
In 1884 the owner of the house, Superior Court Judge George Moore, was shot and killed in the sitting room. Although it was ruled a suicide, the widow vowed to spend the rest of her life proving that it was done by an assassin. The evidence was on her side, and Governor Stoneman was subsequently persuaded to offer a $500.00 reward for the conviction of the killer. The murderer, if there was one, was never found.
In 1918 Susan Hocking, who owned the house with her husband Tobias T. Hocking, died from the Spanish flu, the worst pandemic in human history. She is buried in the Jackson City Cemetery.
In 1940 the house was bought by Walter and Margaret Voss. Walter died in 1958. Margaret, an educated and strong willed woman, lived there until her death in 2001, having lived in three centuries.
The house was purchase by Jerry and Jeaette Chaix in 2001, and completely restored in the years 2002-2006. It was placed on The National Register of Historic Places in 2007.
For a complete history of the house, its restoration, and more stories, see: www.parish-paughhouse.com
Comments 0 comments