Question: Charles L. McLane, for whom McLane High School is named, established the forerunner to Fresno City College almost 100 years ago. Are there any descendants of McLane living in the Fresno area?
-- Kathy Bonilla, public information office, Fresno City College
Answer: Charles Lourie McLane has two living great-granddaughters -- Beverly Brock of Sanger and Hilary Brock Ward of Arizona -- and a great-great-granddaughter, Samantha Ward of Arizona.
"We are the last surviving descendants," Brock said, who vaguely recalls "Grand Pop" McLane. "I remember him at a Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner," she said. "He was in declining health. I was a little afraid of him. He was very big and I was very small."
Brock said most of her memories of her great-grandfather came from her late mother, Barbara Harris Brock. "She was very proud of him and of being his granddaughter," Brock said.
Beverly Brock holds a picture of her great-grandfather, Charles L. McLane. In 1910, he founded Fresno Junior College, now Fresno City College. In 1916, he helped start Fresno Normal School, which became Fresno State College.
"When she was in kindergarten, she went to the lab school" on the then- Fresno State College campus, in about 1925. After school, her mother would go to McLane's office and play with the date stamp and other office equipment on his desk.
A native of Missouri, McLane came to Fresno in 1891, when he became principal of two elementary schools. He moved to Virginia City but returned to Fresno a few years later.
McLane was superintendent of city schools from 1899 to 1916. In 1910, he founded Fresno Junior College at Stanislaus and O streets with 10 teachers. The school, now Fresno City College, was the first junior college in California and it led to the creation of other junior colleges in the state.
McLane helped start and was the first president of Fresno Normal School, which opened in 1911 and later was renamed Fresno State College. He served on the state board of education from 1927 to 1933.
McLane died in 1949 and McLane High School was named for him in 1959.
Q: Who was the namesake of the Clarke Auditorium that burned down at the Chowchilla Madera County Fair grounds?
-- Roy Price, Chowchilla
A: The Clarke Auditorium was dedicated to George A. Clarke "in appreciation of his efforts in getting the fair started in 1946," according to a May 10, 1954, Fresno Bee story.
The building, constructed in about 1948, was destroyed in an arson fire in March.
Clarke, a Republican state Assembly member, represented Merced and Madera counties from 1938 to 1956. He served two single terms in the Assembly representing Inyo, Mono, Tuolumne and Mariposa counties first in 1912 and then again in 1922 before moving to Planada, east of Merced.
In the Assembly, Clarke was chairman of the agriculture committee and served on committees on livestock, dairies, conservation, planning, public works and finance.
During the 1943 legislative session, Clarke introduced 15 bills revising grading of farm produce that were signed into law.
He was a director of the Merced County Farm Bureau and served on several Merced County committees related to water and agriculture. He also belonged to the Masonic Lodge and the Planada Chamber of Commerce.
Clarke and his wife, Mabel, had six children. He died on Feb. 12, 1967, at 93.
Carrie Mitchell, chief executive officer of the Chowchilla Madera County Fair, said after the insurance claim is settled, plans will be made to build a new auditorium.
Q: Which ocean -- Atlantic or Pacific -- is colder? I have a debate going on.
-- Shirley Boatman, Fresno
A: Theoretically, the Pacific Ocean is colder, but only by a few degrees.
Sea-surface temperatures in the oceans depend on season, location, water, circulation patterns and other factors, said oceanographer Nick Bond with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
However, by "crunching some numbers," Bond compared the average sea-surface temperatures for the North Pacific to those of the North Atlantic.
The average sea-surface temperature of the northern Pacific Ocean is 17.16 degrees Celsius compared to the average 18.84 degrees Celsius for the northern Atlantic Ocean.
Converted to Fahrenheit, that's 62.8 degrees in the Pacific and 65.9 degrees in the Atlantic.
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