Hettenshaw Valley, is a

valley A valley is an elongated low area often running between Hill, hills or Mountain, mountains, which will typically contain a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers ...

in the

North Coast Ranges The Coast Ranges of California span from Del Norte or Humboldt County, California, south to Santa Barbara County. The other three coastal California mountain ranges are the Transverse Ranges, Peninsular Ranges and the Klamath Mountains. Phy ...

Trinity County, California Trinity County is a List of counties in California, county located in the northwestern portion of the U.S. state of California. Trinity County is rugged, mountainous, heavily forested, and lies along the Trinity River (California), Trinity River ...

. Its mouth lies at an elevation of 3071 feet, (936m). The head of the valley is at its south end, bounded by a ridge of Hettenshaw Peak, where the

Van Duzen River The Van Duzen River is a river on the north coast of California. It is a major tributary of the Eel River and drains , mostly in Humboldt County, with a small portion in Trinity County. The river travels from its headwaters on the west side o ...

has its source, . Its mouth lies on the northwest end of the valley where the Van Duzen River flows out to the west into

Refuge Valley Refuge is a place or state of safety. It may also refer to a more specific meaning: Safety * Area of refuge, a location in a building that may be used by occupants in the event of a fire * Bunker, a defensive fortification designed to protect p ...

between Hetten Rock to the north and Hetten Ridge to the south. The north and east of the valley is bounded by

Mad River Ridge Mad, mad, or MAD may refer to: Geography * Mad (village), a village in the Dunajská Streda District of Slovakia * Mád, a village in Hungary * Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport, by IATA airport code * Mad River (disambiguation), several r ...

, the southeast by Hettenshaw Peak.

History

Also known as the Kettenshaw Valley in the early days of settlement. The valley was the scene of fighting during the

Bald Hills War Bald Hills War (1858–1864) was a war fought by the forces of the California Militia, California Volunteers and soldiers of the U.S. Army against the Chilula, Lassik, Hupa, Mattole, Nongatl, Sinkyone, Tsnungwe, Wailaki, Whilkut and Wi ...

, part of the territory of the

Wailaki people The Eel River Athabaskans include the Wailaki, Lassik, Nongatl, and Sinkyone (Sinkine) groups of Native Americans that traditionally live in present-day Mendocino, Trinity, and Humboldt counties on or near the Eel River and Van Duzen River o ...

who were led by

Lassic Lassic (died 1863) also called, Las-sic, Las-Sic, Lasseck and Lassux in various military reports and newspaper articles at the time, was a Wailaki leader during the Bald Hills War. Wailaki Leader in the Bald Hills War During the 1859-1862 period ...

.THE WAR OF THE REBELLION: A COMPILATION OF THE OFFICIAL RECORDS OF THE UNION AND CONFEDERATE ARMIES, Ser. I, Vol. 50, Part I, CHAPTER LXII. OPERATIONS ON THE PACIFIC COAST.* JANUARY 1, 1861-JUNE 30, 1865. PART I. REPORTS, ETC. p. 18–19
/ref> It has also been called Hettenchaw Valley and Hettenchow Valley.

References

Valleys of Trinity County, California Valleys of California {{TrinityCountyCA-geo-stub