Dr. Paskowitz was raised in Birmingham, Alabama. He attended Vanderbilt
University in Nashville, Tennessee and Medical School at University of Tennessee in Memphis. He served in the United States Navy from 1967-1970. He practiced Obstetrics and Gynecology in Memphis and Sacramento and Roseville until his retirement in 1999. Dr. Paskowitz has lived in the Yuba-Sutter area for twenty years. However, he has been a student of the area for forty-four years, having married into the Stineman pioneer family.
Dr. Paskowitz became involved with the pursuit of George Derby because of the “Derby Map” introduced to him by Jack Steed, the authority on the Donner Party Rescue Site. The Derby Map led him to read Derby’s topographical notes regarding the map.
Reading this remarkable piece of literature led him to the question “Who is this guy?” “This guy” search led to PHOENIXIANA, THE SQUIBOB PAPERS, and the history of the Battle of Cerro Gordo and the connection of George Derby with Mark Twain.
