Clark's Corner in Ione commemorates the city in Amador County cattle ranching history. Photo by: Jerry Budrick

There was a hot time at Ione's new Clark's Corner on Saturday afternoon, as more than 60 branding irons were rounded up and herded in to be burned into a wall dedicated to commemoration of the city's place in Amador County cattle ranching history.

Creation of the branding wall was one of the final touches on the nearly-complete transformation of what used to be Orville's Bar, kitty-corner from Ione City Hall. The Clark family and partner Mayor Andrea Bonham invited everyone in the neighborhood to bring both their active and historic branding irons to be seared into the future. Clark's Corner is scheduled to be open to the public for the first time on Dec. 13, the day of the Christmas Parade.

"This is what Clark's Corner is all about," Bonham said, "connecting as a community. I love this community and thank them for sharing their time and stories with us." Bonham later pointed out that this is not the first such wall of brands in Ione. "There is one section left of a branding wall at the store called, 'Second Look,'" she said.

The 63 brands, mostly handcrafted iron, but some electric, were offered their places on the wall by lottery, though Ron Speer's upper-case "R" with an arrow (or spear) pointing to the right was assigned its cleverly natural position at the right center as a directional sign to the rest rooms.

Branding on the original wood wall posed some danger, so "Branding Queen" Teresa Mondani sprayed water prior to each brand, while Speer monitored the heat with an ultra-modern remote heat-sensing device.

District 2 Supervisor Richard Forster brought his family's historic "FO" brand, which found a prominent location on the upper left. Mondani's family brand, "CD," for Charlie Dufrene's 1865 cattle operation, ended up in a very visible spot, about 6-foot tall and centered. Bonham's family brand, "AB", for Andy Bonham, is directly on a line between Speer and Mondani.

The nearly 100 attendees indulged in various hors d'oeuvres, wine, beer, coffee and the aroma of smoke from the irons of history.

Forster mentioned the existence of another branding wall, at the Amador County Fairgrounds. There is a wall near the junior livestock area built with branding in mind. The wall is called "Amador County's Finest Brands."

Junior Livestock Booster Chuck Simmons said that local ranchers are invited to burn their way into county history and contribute to the Junior Livestock Area Improvement Fund in the process. For a $100 contribution, a brand can be burned into the wall and a brass plaque will be affixed to the wall with information about the brand.

For further information about this program, call Sherri Elliott at the Amador County Fair office, 245-6921.