Editing Willits, California (section)

==History==
Hiram Willits arrived from [[Indiana]] in 1857 to settle in the Little Lake Valley.<ref>Hogle, Gene. ''NAC Green Book of Pacific Coast Touring'' (1931), National Automobile Club, p.45</ref> Kirk Brier founded the settlement on Willits' land.<ref name=CGN /> Willits was originally called "Willitsville".<ref name=CGN /> Later, when the post office opened in 1861, it was called "Little Lake".<ref name=CGN /> The name changed to Willits in 1874.<ref name=CGN /> The community incorporated in 1888.<ref name=CGN />

[[File:Willits hotel rare.jpeg|thumb|left|Willits Hotel, 1903]]
[[File:CWR 46 and 45 at Willits June 1974xRP - Flickr - drewj1946.jpg|thumb|[[California Western Railroad]] excursion train at [[Willits Depot]], 1974]]

Little Lake was the scene of a legendary feud between the Frost and Coates families. The Frost family supported the [[Confederate States of America|Confederacy]] during the [[American Civil War]], and the Coates family supported the [[Union (American Civil War)|Union]]. Both families were passionate in their beliefs. On October 16, 1867, Election Day, the long-running feud came to a head. A brawl turned into a shootout in front of Baechtel's store, leaving Abraham Coates, Henry Coates, Albert Coates, Thomas Coates and Elisha Frost dead on the street. Three others were wounded.<ref>Secrest, William B. (2005). ''California Feuds: Vengeance, Vendettas and Violence on the Old West Coast''. Word Dancer Press. P.121 {{ISBN|1-884995-42-X}}</ref>

In 1879, three men were charged with [[petty larceny]], having been accused of stealing a saddle and harness. The three, it was later reported, had for years been involved in stealing, robbing smokehouses, drinking, and reckless discharging of their firearms. They were taken to Brown's Little Lake Hotel to await the arrival of the circuit court judge. Following a meeting at Willits' [[Masonic Temple]], 30 masked temple members seized the prisoners, and they were hanged from a nearby bridge. A newspaper reported there was no proof the murdered men were guilty of the charges.<ref>''Badge and Buckshot: Lawlessness in Old California'' By John Boessenecker.  {{ISBN|978-0806125107}}</ref><ref>Kulczyk, David. (2008). ''California Justice – Shootouts, Lynchings and Assassinations in the Golden State''. Word Dancer Press, p.37 {{ISBN|1-884995-54-3}}</ref><ref>San Francisco Call - August 6, 1899</ref>

Willits became a boomtown due to the [[tanbark]] industry.<ref name="visitwillits.com">{{cite web |title=Willits History – Visit Willits, California |url=https://visitwillits.com/willits-history/ |website=visitwillits.com |access-date=May 29, 2022}}</ref> The 1970s "[[Back-to-the-land movement#The movement in North America|back to the land]]" [[homesteading]] movement paved the way for Willits' reputation as the [[Solar energy|solar]] capital of the world in the 1980s.<ref name="visitwillits.com"/>

The Willits area is the final home of the racehorse [[Seabiscuit]]. [[Ridgewood Ranch]], where Seabiscuit trained, recuperated, lived out his retirement and was buried, is located a few miles south of the city.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-sep-19-me-ranch19-story.html |title=Efforts to Preserve Seabiscuit's Home Enter the Final Stretch |last=Hollis |first=Robert |date=September 19, 2004 |work=Los Angeles Times |access-date=November 11, 2018 |language=en-US |issn=0458-3035}}</ref>

===Hexavalent chromium pollution and cleanup===
Beginning in 1996, the city and many residents became embroiled in lawsuits against the [[Whitman Corporation]] (later acquired by [[PepsiCo, Inc.]]), alleging that [[hexavalent chromium]] pollution left by a chrome plating plant, which operated in Willits from 1964 to 1995, was responsible for several local health problems.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.sfgate.com/default/article/A-Town-Diseased-and-Torn-Willits-split-on-3239206.php | work=The San Francisco Chronicle | title=A Town Diseased and Torn / Willits split on whether illnesses are due to chemicals left by shuttered plant | first=David | last=Lazarus | date=March 31, 2000}}</ref> Activist [[Erin Brockovich]], known for the eponymous movie about her work in a similar case, participated in a lawsuit on behalf of the plaintiffs. By 2003, plans were put into place to inject a solution into strategic wells at the site to neutralize the chromium and remediate the pollution on site. These plans successfully reduced the pollution, and further injections and a monitoring plan were implemented in 2005 and 2008.<ref>{{cite report |url=http://willitstrust.org/key_documents/fact_sheets/fact_sheet_14.pdf |publisher=Jacobson James and Associates, manager of Willits Environmental Remediation Trust |title=Interim Remedial Action for Chromium Contaminated Ground Water |date=March 2003}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.willitstrust.org/key_documents/Remco_IRA_Work_Plan_for_Supplemental_Injections_Hex_Chrome.pdf |title=Work Plans for Supplemental Injections |date=October 23, 2009 |publisher=Jacobson James and Associates, manager of Willits Environmental Remediation Trust}}</ref> In 2011, various lawsuits were combined into a single suit involving paying for the site cleanup and payouts to affected individuals; most lawsuits were resolved in 2012.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.willitsnews.com/news/ci_21759040/remco-lawsuit-nearing-an-end | work=The Willits News | title=Remco lawsuit nearing an end | first=Linda | last=Williams | date=October 12, 2012}}</ref>