Flames All But Destroy Historic Northern California Community

Erratic winds fanned a fire from a downed power line into an inferno Tuesday that destroyed most of the historic Sonoma County community of Preston.

Later, another blaze to the south near Sebastopol destroyed at least a dozen homes, authorities said.

Among the ruins in Preston was the community’s centerpiece, the three-story 17-room Preston Mansion, built in 1876 by Col. Hartwell Preston for his wife, Emily, who founded a utopian community called the Free Pilgrims Covenant.

Madame Preston, who died in 1909 at the age of 90, had ruled a community of believers as something of an autocrat, saying she had been informed by God how to use herbs to heal the afflicted.

Also burned were the buildings known as the Schoolhouse, the Medicine House and the Wine House.

The fire also destroyed the textile artworks of Christina Buffalo Larkin and the paintings of artist Robert Thomas, album designer for the Grateful Dead. He also lost his collection of antique and unusual folk music instruments.

About 150 firefighters finally contained the blaze before noon.

“This has been a double tragedy,” said area resident Lisa Ellis. “Not only have we lost the historic buildings, but the artists’ colony has been wiped out, an incalculable loss.”

She credited area resident R. Lance Sterling with spreading the alarm.

“Everyone would have burned to death,” she said. “The fire was spreading faster than we could run.”

Firefighters had barely contained the fire when another wind-fanned blaze erupted to the south in a populous, wooded area of the county, blackening drought-dried vegetation, destroying 12 homes and numerous outbuildings, and forcing dozens of residents to flee their homes.

The blaze began just before 2 p.m. near the hamlet of Hessel in an area of rolling hills at the edge of the wine country near California 116 near Sebastopol.

At least 20 fire departments, including firefighters from as far away as Mendocino and Santa Cruz, battled the blaze while air tankers and helicopters bombarded the flames with fire retardant chemicals and water.

However, late Tuesday, Tim Richardson of the state Division of Foresty said firefighters had managed to contain 50% of the 250-acre blaze and hoped the winds would permit full containment today.

No serious injuries were reported in either fire.