Catherine Gordon Soprano

  The upcoming benefit concert and Victorian Tea at The Red Church in Sonora features the stories and songs of engaging women in Tuolumne County. Elizabeth Leary of Columbia California was one of the first women to take advantage of the Sole Trader act, which allowed her to start her own business in the Performing Arts.  There is a lingering misconception that amusements in Columbia during the Gold Rush were all in the nature of saloons, fandangos, and gambling halls.  The surprising truth is that by 1853, Elizabeth Leary, the wife of Constable John C. Leary, was presenting some of the finest performing artists in the world right here in Tuolumne County. Two of the "Celebrity Songbirds," of the era: Eliza Biscaccianti (The American Thrush) and Catherine Hayes (The Swan of Erin) performed at Mrs. Leary's Assembly Hall at Fulton and Broadway in Columbia. Both of these famous Cantatrices were represented by P.T. Barnum, who had begun promoting opera stars as a way to build h...

 In just a bit more than three weeks the curtain will rise on the musical tribute to Elizabeth Leary and the Celebrity Songbirds. We will also celebrate the 163rd. anniversary of the fist service at St. James' Episcopal Church. Lovingly known as the Red Church in Sonora.   The story of Elizabeth Leary and the famous sopranos she booked into the Armory Assembly Hall gets more fascinating the more research I do. The docents at the Archives at Columbia State Historic Park made a big difference when they showed me, "The Theater of the Golden Era in California," by G.R. Macminn. I have more anecdotes of Tuolumne County, and some bittersweet truths to share.  You don't want to miss the story of Constable John Leary, and get ready to learn more interesting facts about P.T. Barnum and Jenny Lind. You will be familiar with the beautiful songs in the program, and I hope you will come away with a deeper understanding of the challenges faced by these engaging women of the Califor...