Born in Delaware, Phineas Banning was a Civil War Union officer and businessman who never lived in the San Gorgonio Pass. So, why was our remote hamlet named for him in about 1877? On Thursday, May 14, at 6:30 p.m., the San Gorgonio Pass Historical Society and presenter Laurie McLaughlin will explore the competing legends explaining how this intriguing historical figure became the city’s namesake.
Beaumont Woman’s Club Community Center, 306 E. 6th Street, Beaumont, free and open to all. For more information about the historical society, visit sgphs.org or the San Gorgonio Pass Historical Society Facebook page.