Bret Harte Village was incorporated in 1986 by its developer, Coker Ewing.  A total of 175 single family homes have been built in this fully built-out association. Front yard maintenance is included in the monthly dues.  The annual meeting is the third Wednesday in January at 7:30 PM in the Gold River Community Center.  The Bret Harte Board of Directors are elected for a two year term have monthly meetings held on the first Wednesday of the month, 7:00 PM, at the Gold River Community Center. Members of this village may search or download their documents by clicking here. History: Bret Harte, one of California's most prominent writers of the 1860's, came west in 1854.  He worked at a variety of jobs, visited the gold mines, and wrote juvenile poetry and prose.  Then Harte went to work for a weekly newspaper near Eureka and learned journalistic skills.  He was forced to leave when he courageously refused to remain silent following a massacre of nearby Indians.  Harte moved to San Francisco where, at the age of 23, his mature writing began. Working for San Francisco journals as typesetter, author, and editor, Harte published the works which made him famous.  At his best, he drew the realistic picures of life in the mines in "M'liss", "The luck of Roaring Camp", and "The Outcasts of Poker Flat".  Vivid descriptions of the Sierra, pathos, and humor combined to create the well-known image of California.  In his later years, removed from the source of his inspiration, Harte's work become repetitive, although still popular abroad. In his stories, colorful characters and localities appear and reappear, bearing names that mirror reality as seen through Harte's artistry.  The streets in Bret Harte Village are named for those people and places that still live in his works.