Ownership
Sometime around 1885, the United States government sold Hog Island to one Christian Kuschert, a German immigrant. In 1902, Kuschert gave the island to his sister Catherine and her husband, Henry Siemsen. Within a year, the Siemsens sold the island to a N.W. Mallery, who lost the property in 1909 as a result of bankruptcy. Clara Windsor bought the property through the bankruptcy court proceedings for $800.
In 1969, Michael and Annabelle Gahagan purchased the island from Ms Windsor. The next year, the Gahagans became publishers of The Point Reyes Light, the regional weekly newspaper. They sold Hog Island to Audubon Canyon Ranch in 1972, who used it as a bird sanctuary. Due to difficulties managing the island, the Audubon Canyon Ranch donated Hog Island to the Point Reyes National Seashore in 1996.
The island is now uninhabited, but remains of a structure and a small pier show evidence of prior human habitation. The island is a pupping ground for Harbor seals, so access is restricted during pupping season.
Read more about this topic: Hog Island (Tomales Bay)
Famous quotes containing the word ownership:
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—Federal Writers’ Project Of The Wor, U.S. public relief program (1935-1943)