Jan’s Place, CA 2025
Join us at DeChambeau Creek, on the edge of Mono Lake, to help restore Jan’s Place!
PROJECT PARTNER: DeChambeau Creek Foundation
SESSION DATES: May 25-30, June 1-6, June 8-13, June 15-20, and June 22-27
CAPACITY PER SESSION: 7 Volunteers + 1 Kitchen Helper
PROJECT SUPERVISORS: (Assignment in progress)
CREW LEADER: (Assignment in progress)
Project Site Description & History
On the western banks of Mono Lake sits Jan’s Place, a 135 acre property protected by its former owner Jan Simis who helped organize the DeChambeau Creek Conservation Easement, protecting DeChambeau creek and portions of the original Silvester and DeChambeau homesteads of the late 1800s.
Jan’s Place sits on land that was originally homesteaded by Thomas and Emma Sylvester in the early 1880s. Later, their son Albert and his wife Alice maintained the ranch until 1958 when Albert sold 25 acres of the homestead to Charlie and Jan Simis. They worked diligently to restore 1880s Sylvester cabin, while removing the remains of a deteriorated home located on the property. The restoration of the cabin paid homage to an earlier time, evident in the usage of materials from a bygone era. The original historic Lower Cabin still stands today, and served as the home of the Land Stewards. During the 1970’s and additional of 110 acres of land was added to the original 25 acres through the purchase of the nearby Bryant property (which included the original DeChambeau home).
The Upper Cabin was designed and built by Jan, and incorporates both her style and love of recycling old items for reuse. With preservation of the property at the forefront of her mind, a Conservation Easement was granted to the Eastern Sierra Land Trust in April of 2010 and the DeChambeau Creek Foundation was established in May of 2010. Ownership of the land and property was given to the DeChambeau Creek Foundation in 2017 after Jan’s passing.
The location of Jan’s place is historically linked to the Kootzaduka’a tribe, who lived between the Sierra Nevada Moutains and the Great Basin. According to the Mono Lake Committee website, the Kootzaduka’a are the southernmost band of the Numu (Northern Paiute) and speak the local dialect of Numu Yadooana. The Kootzaduka’a moved through the Mono Lake area with the seasons, and established prominent trade relationships with neighboring Tribes.
Location and Logistics
SESSION DATES: May 25-30, June 1-6, June 8-13, June 15-20, and June 22-27
Please plan to arrive at the campsite no earlier than 5pm and no later than 7pm on the first day of your session.
LOCATION: Located in the portal town of Lee Vining on the edge of Mono Lake, and the east entrance to Yosemite National Forest!
MAP to JAN’s PLACE
ACCESS: 
Tent campers, truck campers, campervans, trailers, RVs up to 35′ will have access to our campground. Dogs are allowed but must be leashed and kept under control at all times.
WEATHER: Anticipate highs in the 70s and lows in the 40s. Weather conditions may be rainy, cloudy, or sunny. Volunteers are responsible for checking weather conditions before their session begins, and packing appropriately.
ABOUT VOLUNTEERING: HistoriCorps projects are free for volunteers! HistoriCorps will provide all meals, tools, training, equipment, and a campsite. Volunteers are responsible for their own transportation to the campsite, sleeping equipment, work gloves, clothes and boots, and other personal gear.
Scope of Work
SCOPE OF WORK DIFFICULTY: 
HistoriCorps is committed to educating and training volunteers in preservation skills, with an overarching mission of inspiring a preservation ethic in all those involved. Learning and working alongside expert HistoriCorps field staff and other volunteers while applying the traditional skills necessary to restore Jan’s Place, you will assist to:
- Reinforce the bedroom’s log post-and-beam structure
- Create footing under the south exterior bedroom wall
- Secure siding and replace missing battens
- Perform maintenance and repairs as needed on historic windows
- If time allows: repair soft spots in the floor of the house
Please note: Tasks vary by day and by week, depending on a variety of factors including: weather, project priorities, previous groups’ work, and more. Though it is likely you will get to learn and practice most or all of the above tasks, it is not guaranteed. The higher percentage of the scope a particular task is, the more likely you will get to practice it.
Sign Up!
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Volunteer Logistics, Policies, and Advice
We’re so glad you’re interested in joining this project! If you’re new to our community, review the Volunteer FAQ first! Please note the following logistics and policies:
- Volunteering with HistoriCorps is free! We will provide all meals, tools, training, equipment, and a campsite or shared indoor lodging. Dinner is not provided on the first night.
- Volunteers are responsible for bringing their own gear, work gloves, sturdy work clothes and boots, and appropriate sleeping equipment. Check the average temperatures before you start packing – the nights and mornings may be colder than you anticipate! Then, read this advice about how to stay warm when tent camping in colder places.
- Campsite accessibility varies by project. Some projects can accommodate tents only; others can accommodate small RVs. Please review the project site description above for more information, and if you’re still not sure, email volunteer@historicorps.org for help.
- If this project does not offer showers, you might want to consider bringing a solar shower or research other methods to clean up after the work day.
- Volunteer crew sizes generally range from 4-8 volunteers, with two HistoriCorps staff that lead and train volunteers in the work.
- Safety is one of HistoriCorps’ top priorities, and volunteers can contribute to a safe working environment by ensuring their physical fitness is adequate for the work. See above for this project’s scope of work and difficulty level. Please, call us if you are not quite sure if a project is a good fit for your skills or fitness level. We may be able to suggest a project more suitable and enjoyable for you.
- Hard hats, eye protection, ear protection, gloves are standard personal protection equipment (PPE) required on all projects. Hard hats must be worn at all times on the project site, unless working in a designated safe space. Field staff will train volunteers on correct use of PPE.
- Dogs are generally allowed to accompany their humans in project campsites (actually, we love having dogs join us around the campfire!). Dogs are not permitted on the job site for everyone's safety. HOWEVER: HistoriCorps also follows the rules and regulations of our project partner. If the project partner does not permit dogs onsite then HistoriCorps is no exception. Please ask HistoriCorps or the project partner directly if you have any questions about whether Fido is welcome.