The Lindsay Point plaque, long ago bestowed at Stockton City Hall, is set to be removed following a unanimous vote by city council, citing its offensive nature and inaccurate portrayal of history.
At the council’s meeting last week, City Clerk Katherine Roland explained why the 56 year-old plaque should have never existed in the first place while detailing the initial incident from an 1880 book at Lindsay Point, the meeting site of McLeod Lake and the Miner’s Channel, which ran between present-day Miner and Channel streets.
Around 1884, a smallpox outbreak occurred in California, deadly enough that even John Sutter of Sutter’s Fort “threatened to shoot any man arriving at the fort with the disease,” according to the initial account.
One man referred to as Thomas Lindsay on the plaque but as “A Mr. Lindsay” in the account, prevailed in letting the Kelsey family, including a young girl named America Kelsey Wyman, to stay in his hut while seeking medicine. Her father, however, had unknowingly contracted smallpox.
The morning after the Kelseys’ stay, Wyman’s father woke up in a full-blown outbreak, leading to the burning of Lindsay’s tule hut to prevent further contamination. “Indians murdered Mr. Lindsay on the peninsula that bears his name, burned the buildings, and fled to the coast range taking the stock with them,” the book reads.
Roland said the testimony of then-11 year-old Wyman was dismissed due to her age, despite being able to care for her mother and sickly father and driving her father’s wagon. Others ignored her testimony entirely, even though she was a key witness.
In another dramatic narrative, created in 1923 by the same author George Henry Tinkham, he described Lindsay as having been killed by Native Americans as stated in the previous book and on the plaque. This version, while similar, adds another part not found in the initial account.
Phillip Merlo, executive director at the San Joaquin County Historical Museum, told Stocktonia that we’ll never be 100% sure if these texts are truthful.
“That time is when you get the more kind of offensive language,” said Roland, describing the new text as “sensational.” The story included that “six arrows” were found stuck in Lindsay’s corpse floating in McLeod Lake.
“We have to honor that it’s folklore, but we have to remember that it’s folklore,” Merlo said.
Additionally, Roland said she concluded from a presented photo that Lindsay could not have been the original inventor of the tule hut, for which he is credited on the plaque.
“You could imagine how he did not build the first tule hut in the Stockton area. In fact, you can probably tell who taught him how to build the tule hut. If I was an Indigenous person … I would be really offended by that language as well,” Roland said.
“I think it’s reasonable for the city to have the plaque taken down,” Merlo said. “It’s time to rethink old interpretations.” — Phillip Merlo, executive director, San Joaquin County Historical Museum
Another reason for the plaque’s removal is its poor appearance, including a black growth on its sides, Roland said. “That’s actually moss,” she said.
In an earlier committee meeting, Roland said the plaque has faced several complaints over the years, mainly about its inaccurate text, even attracting the attention of local high schoolers.
The council voted 5-0 to remove the plaque, with no questions or additional comments. Councilmembers Brando Villapudua and Mario Enriquez were absent.
In an email to Stocktonia, Roland said she met with several area historians and researched many sources — including two books, “A History of Stockton from Its Organization up to the Present Time” (1880) and “History of San Joaquin County, California” (1923) — that had differing accounts of the events during the smallpox outbreak.
“There was a consensus that there was enough evidence to support removal of the plaque. I feel that there is much more to discover and welcome any additional historical resources that can add to our understanding of our city’s foundation,” Roland said.
Merlo told Stocktonia that he would be supportive of an updated plaque at the true Lindsay Point, across the street from City Hall.
“I think it’s reasonable for the city to have the plaque taken down,” Merlo said. “It’s time to rethink old interpretations.”