Help Us Save Mare Island Shoreline Heritage Preserve
One of the last urban shoreline nature preserves is under threat from city planning and a lack of funding. We need our entire community to understand the value of this magical place and contribute in any way possible. Please donate or volunteer.
Here is our Facebook Live video of the guided tour of the 105th anniversary of the July, 9 1917 explosion
I gave a guided tour of the July 9, 1917 explosion location, Building 40, a black powder storage magazine, the MacKenzie’s home Building 57 and we took a walk to the Mare Island Naval Cemetery to place flowers and toys for the children at their graves. This tragic story took place 105 years ago in the former Mare Island Naval Ammunition Depot. 15 years ago on the 150th anniversary of the founding of the Ammunition Depot, we opened the sacred lands to the public for the first time in 150 years. We have made every effort to protect the historic, archeological, natural and scenic resources. I hope you begin to understand why it is so important that we be returned as the land trust managers of this land to protect and restore this special place. Myrna Hayes, President, Mare Island Heritage Trust. 707-249-9633. myrnahayes@mac.com
105th Anniversary of an Explosion Still Reverberates at Mare Island Shoreline Heritage Preserve
I am sharing an updated version this morning of the storybook I have written about the MacKenzie Family who were killed in an explosion 105 years ago yesterday, July 9, 1917. Last night late, I added 3 new photos sent to me yesterday afternoon on the explosion anniversary, by their great-granddaughter Linda Garwick. Thank you Linda. More compelling family photos. One is actually a play date at the Mare Island Children’s Playground. Pretty amazing! Thank you for your interest and your love for the Mare Island Shoreline Heritage Preserve and for your friendship in this wonderful wildlands community we have created together. Myrna Hayes The MacKenzie Family July 9, 1917-July 9, 2022v2
105th Anniversary Mare Island Explosion Remembrance, Saturday July 9 and Sunday July 10
Saturday, July 9, 2022 is the 105th anniversary of an explosion that rocked the US Navy and its’ naval base at Mare Island and killed 6 people, four of which were the Chief Gunner of the Mare Island Naval Ammunition Depot, Allen S. MacKenzie , his 39 year old wife Malvina and their two youngest daughters, Dorothy, age 12 and Mildred, ‘Millie”, age 8. The additional two deaths were the Ammunition Depot Gardener and the longest serving employee of the Ammunition Depot. Join Myrna Hayes, founding manager of the Mare Island Shoreline Heritage Preserve from 2007-2019 and President of the Mare Island Heritage Trust Saturday, July 9 and Sunday, July 10 for a presentation and a guided tour of the explosion site, the location of the home in which the family was killed and a walk to the Mare Island Naval Cemetery to view the graves of the MacKenzie family. The guided tour begins at 3:00pm at the former visitor center parking lot 167 O’Hara Ct. and will be from one half hour to 45 minutes in length. The Mare Island Shoreline Heritage Preserve is located at the southernmost end of Azuar Dr. on Mare Island in Vallejo, CA. Meet Myrna Hayes at the parking lot. Call/text her with questions and for directions. phone: 707-249-9633. email: myrnahayes@mac.com The Mare Island Shoreline Heritage Preserve is open Friday, Saturday, Sunday, 8:00am-5:00pm.
Myrna Hayes has written an e-book about the MacKenzie family and the explosion that occurred July 9, 1917 with personal information about the family, excerpts from investigation reports and newspaper articles and a link to the June 2022 publication of an article by Stephen C. Ruder in the Naval History Magazine in which he provides a convincing argument for an alternative cause of the explosion from the one the US Navy reached a conclusion of in 1917 and continuing.
Note: This link is only available without the PayWall until July 22, 2022. https://www.usni.org/magazines/naval-history-magazine/2022/june/who-really-blew-mare-island
Catch of the Day Jimmy Sarmiento’s Photo Osprey Carrying Striped Bass June 17, 2015
The phone, email, text and PM have been “ringing off the hook” this week, as the word gets out throughout the Bay Area that we ARE holding our 10th Annual San Francisco Bay Osprey Days, June 24-26, 2022. And, friends have been posting and telling us where they have seen osprey nesting in the Bay. Here’s local Vallejo resident, Jimmy Sarmiento’s Facebook post “Memory” that came up. This is by far, the biggest “WOW!!” photo I have ever seen of an osprey with a fish. It is also a great story as Jimmy tells it. I am eager to return to our Mare Island Shoreline Heritage Preserve visitor center, because inside it’s doors, we have been locked out of by the City of Vallejo since September 2019, is a fabulous custom print on aluminum of this photo. It is stunning!!
Mare Island Preserve 14th Birthday April 10, 2022 History of Mare Island
Imperial Vision recently completed a great video with Myrna Hayes and the Mare Island Heritage Trusts ongoing battle to Preserve the Preserve.
Osprey Days Coming Up! June 24-26, 2022 Here’s the Info.
HI Osprey Lovers, Here’s all the details in a PDF for our upcoming San Francisco Bay Osprey Days, June 24, 26, 2022. It includes phone numbers and links for boat trip registration. See you soon! Download the PDF event brochure:10th Annual Osprey Days Jun 24-26 2022 If you want to share it to social media, a gallery of individual jpeg files is attached. Call/text Myrna Hayes with questions anytime, 707-249-9633 or email me at myrnahayes@mac.com
We ARE SO CLOSE Sign to get us to 10,000 signatures on our petition. Just 1 to go at 8:23pm July 10, 2022
Hi and good afternoon, My Mare Island Shoreline Heritage Preserve Users! We are so close, we are holding our breath (well, almost). Think about starting out in December of 2019 when we started this online effort with one, just one signature to return our nonprofit land trust, the Mare Island Heritage Trust, to the management of the Mare Island Preserve. Now, we are closing in on, so very close to, 10,000. We CAN do this.Notice that our original post says, Reopen Mare Island Preserve Now! Lots of people think that because the City of Vallejo public works department did eventually open the Preserve back up, that we are finished. Oh, Hell NO!
Please click, sign and shareChange.org petition
Where’s Post Fire Ecology for the Preserve?
Let’s recall for a moment, WHY we created our petition to Reopen the Mare Island Preserve Now! on Thanksgiving weekend 2019. Simple. Not in ANY way because we are blaming the Mayor, City Council or Staff for their decision to address post September 2019 fire issues in...