Sheriff Chris Rachford

Chris Rachford was born in St. George, Quebec, Canada.He was among the original pioneers who settled in Surprise Valley in 1864. He settled in the north end of the valley at Fort Bidwell. Chris married August Snyder in 1867, making their wedding the first in Fort Bidwell. They had seven children. They endured the hardships, trials and dangers that came along with carving a settlement in country that the Native Americans called home. Chris Rachford joined other settlers fighting to establish their dominance in excursions and encounters against the Native Americans in the area. In a battle fought with the Paiutes in Fandango Valley in 1864, Chris was severely wounded for the rest of his life. Chris Rachford was sheriff in 1885 when newscame of a murder on the Madeline Plains, allegedly committed by an Native American man named Holden Dick. Sheriff Rachford, along with a posse, arrested Dick without incident in the South Fork Valley. Dick was tried in Lassen County, where he was found guilty of first degree murder and sentenced to die by hanging. Holden Dick carried the legend of hidden gold in the Warner Mountains with him to his death. Chris Rachford passed away in 1908 in Alturas at the age of 69.