Books

Radley's Hollow

Rolling Hills

Journey into the Haunted Hollow

Radley's Hollow FAQs

Location: West Sonoma County, California
Founded: October 31, 1847
Founder: Jamison Donovan Radley

Primary Industries: Mining, logging, agriculture

Population at Founding: 147
Population by 1900: 1,531
Population by 1950: 3,789
Population by 2000: 9,423
Population by 2050: unknown
Global Human Population by 2147: 3,023
Global Undead Population by 2147: 23,472,928,176 and counting

Early History of Radley's Hollow

Early History: The lush, rich land that became Radley's Hollow once belonged to the Pomo Indians. The Pomo built their villages along the Russian River in fertile valleys thick with oak and madrone forests. They hunted elk, bears and mountain lions. Despite exploration of California's coasts by European sailing vessels, from the 1500's to the early 1800's the Russian River Valley and its inhabitants remained unchanged.

1840-1860: Jamison Donovan Radley, heir to a wealthy East Coast family fortune, is lured to the West by tales of adventure and discovery after the death of his first wife. He arrives in San Francisco in the winter of 1841 and heads up the California coast to what will eventually become Sonoma County. He quickly sets up mining and logging operations that prove highly profitable. In a lush hollow ringed by hills not far from the Russian River, he builds a mansion and invests heavily in the development of a downtown business district not far from his home, as well as in housing for his employees and their families. In October of 1842, he takes a second wife, a young heiress from New Orleans named Madison Severin, but it is his son from his first marriage, Jedediah, who will inherit his empire. The road to success isn’t easy, however. JD’s plans regarding a mine in the east hollow prove unpopular among certain quarters and on the night of the town’s official founding in 1847, his wife Madison is murdered. JD is never the same and soon goes missing in the mine, never to be seen again. Jedediah Radley, then only 19 years old, assumes control of the Radley family fortune and business concerns.

More of Radley’s Hollow’s tumultuous history coming soon.