History of Fresno County, California with illustrations; Wallace W. Elliott & Co. Publishers; San Francisco, California (1882) Page 127
A. M. CLARK was born August 25, 1831, and spent the early years of his life in Madison County, Mississippi, receiving an ordinary education, such as the country schools at that time afforded.
He left Hinds County, Mississippi, in January, 1850, for California, coming by way of New Orleans, from there with a company of about twenty-two men to Matamoras in Mexico, where they bought an outfit and continued through Mexico, partly on the line of march of General Taylor during the Mexican war. A four-horse wagon hauled their baggage, etc., as far as Durango, where they sold out their stock and wagon and hired a pack train to take them across the mountains to Mazatlan. From thence they took a sail vessel to San Francisco, arriving in May, 1850, just after the large fire.
He first engaged in mining in various portions of the State, for about fifteen years, but never meeting with any success. First he tried the mines of Nevada County from 1850 to 1853. He was in Santa Clara County in 1853-4, Mariposa County from 1854 to 1858, Plumas County (formerly Sierra), at La Porte from 1858 to 1863, and then back to Mariposa. He finally came to Fresno County in 1867, and was employed as a laborer about a copper mine, and soon after turned his attention to general farming-, raising some choice fruits, and stock of various kinds.
In the meantime, in 1865, he married Miss Emma B. Glidden, a native of the State of Maine, who died in October, 1880, leaving two boys and two girls, Ada Belle, aged sixteen years; Sarah Paulina, eleven years; Angus, nine years, and Frank Marion Clark, aged four years.
He was elected County Clerk of Fresno County at the election in 1873, and entered upon the duties of the office the following March. He has filled the place with great satisfaction to the people, and proved himself an efficient officer.
A Memorial and Biographical History of the Counties Fresno, Tulare and Kern, California, Illustrated; The Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago (1892); Pages 329-330
A. M. Clark, one of the early pioneers of California, was born in Madison County, Mississippi, in 1831. He was educated in the private schools of that period, which were held in log cabins, and lived on the farm with his parents until he was nineteen years old.
In January, 1850, Mr. Clark started for California, crossing Mexico to Mazatlan and thence by water to San Francisco, where he arrived in May of that Year. He then went to Nevada City to join his father, who came west in 1849. For sixteen years he followed mining continuously, always with paying results, but never striking a bonanza claim. He came to Fresno County in 1867, and he engaged at the copper mine at Buchanan, for about six years.
In 1873, Mr. Clark was elected County Clerk and Recorder of Fresno County, assuming the duties of the office in March, 1874, at Millerton, which was the county seat. In the fall of 1874 he moved the records to Fresno, and in September of the same year assisted in laying the corner stone of the new courthouse. In the interim his office was located in a cheap structure on the courthouse grounds. Mr. Clark held the office of County Clerk and recorder for eleven years. By 1884 the business of the office had increased so much that it was deemed best to separate the work of the clerk and recorder, and he retired. in 1885 he was elected to the Legislature, and since the expiration of his term of office he has devoted himself to his private business, saying he has no further political aspirations.
Mr. Clark formed a partnership with W. H. McKenzie in abstract business, and since 1878 they have carried on an extensivve business, using the Durfee system of abstracts. in 1884 Messrs. Clark and McKenzie bought a controlling interest in the Fresno Loan and Savings Bank. The capital stock, the $20,000, has been increased to $300,000, all paid up, and this bank now represents one ofd the leading institutions of its kind in the City. All through these years Mr. Clark has continued his mining interests, now being a member of the Harron Gold Mining Company, the stock of which is all owned by Messrs. Clark, McKenzie & Hoxie. Their mine is located in the foothills, near the old county seat. They have recently erected Huntington rotary mill with rock breakers, concentrators, and the latest improved machinery, capacity of the same being equal to a ten-stamp mill. The quartz ranges from $25 to $30 per ton.
Mr. Clark was a member of the Board of School Trustees during 1886 and 1887. In 1887 he was elected a member of the Board of City Trustees, which office he resigned in 1889, to make a trip East. in addition to his interests already referred to, he has ranch and city property. Mr. Clark is a prominent knight Templar, at this writing being Eminent Commander of the Fresno Commandery, No. 20.
In Sacramento, in 1865, he was married to Miss Emma Gildon, who died in Fresno in 1880. His present wife he wedded in Fresno, December 25, 1882. She is Miss Sadie Bemis, a native of Massachusetts. Mr. Clark is the father of four children two sons and two daughters.
History of Fresno County with Biographical Sketches; By Paul Vandor; Historical Record Company, Los Angeles, California (1919) Pages 257-258
Angus M. Clark
All through the earlier years, Mr. Clark continued his mining interests and was associated with W. H. McKenzie in the abstract and land title business and owned at one time a controlling interest in the Fresno Loan and Savings Bank, for a time a prosperous financial institution. Ill health and reverses in fortune shadowed his latter days.
Pages 948-949
HONORABLE ANGUS MARION CLARK - As one of the old pioneers of the state, A. M. Clark, who passed away December 2, 1907, is remembered by his friends as a man who did much to further the growth and interests of California, where he chose to cast in his lot. He was born in Madison County, Miss., August 25, 1831, and was brought up on a farm in that southern state until he attained the age of nineteen, attending private school in a log cabin schoolhouse. In January, 1850, he started for the Pacific Coast to join his father, Angus Archibald Clark, of Scotch descent, who was living in Nevada County, Cal., and one among the many who came west in 1849 seeking golden rewards in the mining camps of the early days. Crossing Mexico to Mazatlan, young Mr. Clark took from that seaport to San Francisco, where he arrived in May, going thence to Nevada County. For sixteen years he followed the occupation of mining and in 1867 came to Millerton, Fresno County, and engaged in copper mining at Buchanan, for six years, meeting with varying success.
In 1873 he was elected by his appreciative fellow-citizens to the combined offices of county clerk and recorder of Fresno County, taking office in March, 1874, at Millerton, then the county seat. In the fall of 1874 he moved the county records to Fresno and in September of that year assisted in laying the corner stone of the new court house. In 1878 he formed a partnership with W. H. McKenzie, as Clark & McKenzie, in the abstract business in Fresno, which continued for some years. After eleven years service as county clerk, he retired from the office, and in 1884 he and Mr. McKenzie bought a controlling interest in the Fresno Loan & Savings Bank. Mr. Clark was elected to the Assembly of the State Legislature in 1885, from Fresno County, serving the term to the satisfaction of his constituents. In 1885 he also served as school trustee in Fresno, and in 1887 was elected to the Board of City Trustees, resigning in 1889. His last political office was that of city recorder of Fresno, serving several terms, and as judge of the City Court his decisions were rendered with the greatest fairness.
He organized and was one of three owners of the Harrow Gold Mining Company. Their mines, located in the foothills near Millerton and equipped with modern machinery, were good producers for a number of years. In later years of his life, Mr. Clark had gold mining interests at Auberry Valley. He was also a large owner of city property.
His first marriage occurred in 1865, at Sacramento, when he was united with Emma Glidden, who died in Fresno in 1880. They were the parents of four children, all of whom are living. Ada Belle, who is the wife of L. R. Williams. is now residing in Cottonwood, Shasta County, and is the mother of two children, Marion, now Mrs. A. T. Brown of Cottonwood, and A. Bush Williams, serving in the U. S. Army. Their second child, Sadie P. Clark, is assistant librarian of the Fresno County Library. Angus Clark, assistant secretary and land agent for the Keyroute System, resides in Berkeley. He married Martha Fisher of Woodland, and they are the parents of two children: Katherine Janette and Angus. The fourth child,. Frank Marion, is with the -Western Pacific Railroad in San Francisco.
By his second marriage, which was solemnized December 25, 1882, Mr. Clark was united with Sarah Bemis, a native of Framingham, Mass., who came to San Francisco in 1876. Mrs. Clark is the only charter member of the First Baptist Church now living in Fresno, having always been an active worker in the church, and has done grand work in the organization of charity in Fresno. Mr. Clark was a very prominent Mason, being a Past Master of Fresno Lodge No. 247 F. & A. M. and was also past High Priest of Fresno Chapter No. 69 and Past Commander of Fresno Commandery No. 29, K. T., and a member of Islam Temple A. A. 0. N. M. S. in San Francisco. Mrs. Clark and-, the two daughters, Mrs. Williams and Miss Sadie, were members and Past Matrons of Raisina Chapter No. 89 0. E. S.
It is to such men as A. M. Clark, that Fresno County today owes much of its present greatness, development and prosperity, for with his energy and optimism he was always working to build up the county; was aggressive in the cause of education and zealous for a splendid school system, and a high standard of morals. Thus the best interests of his town and county were always nearest and dearest to his heart.
History of Alameda County, California: page 948
PERRY MORRISON.--
Was born in Dearborn County, Indiana, October 6, 1818. At the age of six
years he was taken by his parents to the vicinity of Indianapolis, where he
was brought up, and resided on a farm until 1839. At this time he
accompanied his parents to Louisa County, Iowa, and there engaged in
farming, in the mean time losing his father in 1843. In march 1847, in
company with a train of eighteen wagons, with whom were Mr. Meek and L.
Stone, at present residents of this county, they started with ox-team to
cross the plains to Oregon, to which terra incognita they proceeded by way
of Fort Hall, and arrived in Oregon City, September 7, 1847. The county
was at that time, as it is to-day, the perfection of a timber country, and
nearly all who arrived there at that commenced the felling of trees and the
manufacture of lumber. On arrival Mr. Morrison engaged in sawing logs, and
such like empolyment, until September 1848, when hearing of the discovery
of gold, he laid down the saw and ax, and betook himself to California and
her prolific gold-fields. Arriving on Feather River in October, 1848, he
followed mining, which abandoning in August, 1849, he came to Alameda
County, then the Contra Costa, and located his present valuable homestead,
then pointing to but little comfort, but now developed into one of the most
splendid places in the township in which he resides. Married, firstly, in
Tipton, Iowa, Miss Mary Davis, a native of Ohio, who died shortly after her
espousal; and secondly, in San Francisco, Miss Martha Hastings, a native of
Hartland, Vermont, By which union there were three children, Only two now
surviving, viz.: Samuel, and George P.
Hezekiah M. MILLER History of Sacramento page 1529
HEZEKIAH M. MILLER. Successful in his chosen work, H. M. MILLER is entitled
to a prominent place among the substantial citizens of Yolo county to which
location he first came in 1871, and although for brief intervals during the
time since he has resided in other sections of the country his strongest
interests and associations are in the community which he selected for a
home. Mr. MILLER is a native of Maryland. His birth having occurred in
Frederick county. November 13, 1850, his parents, Charles and Rosanna
(Myers) MILLER, being natives respectively of Frederick and Washington
counties, same state. The paternal grandfather, John, was a son of the
Fatherland, who emigrated to America and became a farmer in Frederick
county, Md. The latter was a Lutheran in religion and a man of strong
character and upright living. Charles MILLER became a farmer in young
manhood, remaining in his native county for some years, but finally removing
to Washington county, two miles from Sharpsburg, upon land which formed a
part of the battle-ground for Famous Antietam, during which conflict the
family took refuge in the cellar. In that county in 1860 his wife passed
away. Later in life MILLER removed to his old home in Frederick County
where he spent the remainder of his life dying there in 1868, at an advanced
age. Mrs. MILLER was the daughter of Frederick MYERS, also a native of
Washington county, MD. Mr. MYERS was de-scended from German ancestry, a
Lutheran in religion and a farmer by occupation, passing the years of his
life on the banks of Antietam creek.
Of the four children born to his parents. H. M. MILLER is the third in order
of birth and one of the two who are now living. The years of his boyhood
and voting manhood were spent in his native state, his education being
received in the public schools in the vicinity of his home. His first
employment away from home was a clerkship in Maryland, where he remained
until 1869, when he came as far west as Ogle county, Ill., and there located
in Mt. Morris. He was variously employed until the 1st of November of the
following year, when he set out for California, spending the winter in St.
Joseph. MO., and in May 1871, completing the journey, which brought him to
Yolo county. His first occupation here was on a ranch, continuing in this
employment for nearly two years, when, with his brother, Frederick, he
rented land in this locality and engaged in independent farming. The first
of the three years in which they were thus occupied they made only their
expenses, on account of the drought, but later met with better success. In
the Centennial year M. MILLER returned east and in Maryland spent nine
months returning at the expiration of that period to Yolo county, and with
his brother purchasing four hundred and eighty acres near Knight's Landing,
which he two improved and cultivated for upwards of eleven years. In 1888 H.
M. MILLER sold his interest in the farm to his brother and became connected
with Lowe, Myers & Co., a firm which was organized in 1868, through the
purchase of the interest of E. R. Lowe, and this business is now conducted
under the firm name of N. Myers Co. He owns a quarter interest in the ranch
which consists of eight thousand acres of land, twenty-six hundred of this
being tillable, while the balance is devoted to the raising of sheep and
cattle. The partners of Mr. MILLER are his uncle, Noah Myers, and E.
POFFENBERGER, each owning a quarter, and Luther Poffenberger and S. C.
Deaner, owning a quarter in conjunction. Mr. MILLER also owns a ranch of
one hundred and sixty-nine acres ad-joining the company land which property
is now rented. From 1888 to 1902 he resided on his ranch, but in the last
named year he removed to Woodland where he has since made his home.
Mr. MILLER has been twice married, his first wife being Matilda Belle
McGrath, a native of Washington county, MD and a daughter of Samuel McGrath,
a retired farmer of Sutter county, Cal., and the representative of an old
Maryland family. He died March 31, 1897 in Woodland leaving a family of
three children namely: Noah Lee, Elizabeth Rose and Sarah Mabel. In
Sacramento, in 1900, Mr. MILLER was united in marriage with Miss Abbie Lee
McGrath, a sister of his first wife. She is a member of the Methodist
Episcopal Church to which Mr. MILLER gives a liberal support. He is
connected with many of he business interests of Woodland, being a
stockholder and director in the Woodland Rochdale Company. Fraternally he
was made a Mason in Woodland Lodge. No.156, A. F. & A: M.; was exalted to
the sublime Royal Arch degree in Woodland Chapter, No.46, and belongs to the
Woodland Commandery, No.21, K. T. He also belongs to the Order of Eastern
Star. Politically he is a stanch adherent of the principles advocated in
the platform of the Democratic Party, and has taken a lively interest in
party affairs. He is ex-member of the county central committee Sutter
County, and in 1896, 1898 and 1900 was a delegate to the state convention.
Mr. MILLER is a liberal and enterprising man and citizen, and holds a high
place among the men who have aided materially in the development and
upbuilding of this section of California.
JACOB MORGAN MILLER History of Scaramento page 878
JACOB MORGAN MILLER. One of the largest and most prominent farmers and
stockmen in the Sacramento valley is J. M. Miller, whose father and paternal
grandfather were born in Washington county, Md., near Sharpsburg. His
father, Francis M., was a farmer in Maryland, but about 1868 removed to Van
Clevesville, W. Va. Jacob Morgan Miller was born near Sharpsburg,
Washington county, Md., December 18, 1854, and was brought up on his
father's farm until sixteen years of age. When seven years of age he went
with his uncle over battlefield of Antietam, and witnessed that historic
battle. He was educated in the public schools of Sharpsburg, Md., and of
Virginia, and in 1872 came to California and joined an uncle, Samuel Miller,
who had come to this state some years before and was farming near Woodland.
From May until fall he worked for his uncle on the farm, then for another
farmer for about a year. In 1873 he purchased the necessary implements and
engaged in farming for himself in what is now Glenn county, three miles
north of Willow. This was virgin soil, and he broke and cultivated it two
years, but the second year he lost all of his crop, and after selling out
and paying up his indebtedness, went forth to make another start. He worked
for David N. Hershey for eighteen months, then for W. Anderson in Yolo
county another eighteen months, and in that way made some money, with which
he removed to his present place. In 1879 he went into partnership with John
Kennedy and rented six hundred acres of land. Each of them had a four-horse
team, and the first year raised large crops, thus getting a good start.
Each year they rented a little more land until in 1890, when Mr. Miller
bought his partner out and continued the business alone until 1900, when he
took his brother in with him. Together they operate over seven thousand
acres of land, mostly grain and grazing land, and own six hundred and forty
acres of land on Grand Island. They have two fifty-horse power traction
engines, used for plowing, harrowing and harvesting. They each plow forty
acres per day, and barrow two hundred acres a day. Besides horses, they
have many mule teams, and raise cattle and sheep, and have from three
thousand to six thousand head of sheep, mostly of the Shropshire breed.
Individually J. M. Miller owns three hundred and twenty acres of land.
Mr. Miller was one of the organizers of the Farmers' Transportation Company
of Grimes, of which he is president, and built the steamer, Valletta, of six
hundred tons, carrying freight between Colusa and San Francisco. The steamer
was so named in honor of Mr. Miller's eldest daughter. W. T. Forsman is the
Sacramento manager, and they have offices in both Sacramento and San
Francisco. Mr. Miller was married in Sutter county, September 2, 1885, to
Minnie WEIS, the eldest daughter of Jacob WEIS, who was born in Ohio, and
came when a young man across the plains to California. He engaged in
packing to the mines for a time, then purchased six hundred acres of land at
Cranmore, where he still resides. Her mother, formerly Annie GIBBONS is
also living, and is the mother of seven children, five of whom are living.
Mrs. Miller died in 1899. Four children were born to them, viz.: Carl
Morgan, who was educated at St. Mary's College at Oakland; Valletta, who is
attendance Mills College at Oakland; Lawrence Merrell and Lorna Grace. Mr.
Miller is a most successful man in his line of business, of which he has
made a thorough study, and possessing great executive ability is enabled to
carry out his ideas. Personally he is broadminded and hospitable and is ever
ready to assist those who have been less fortunate than himself. He is a
deep thinker and well posted upon general matters. In politics he is a
Democrat, and is trustee of the Wilkins Slough school district.
L. W. MEYER History of Sonoma County
Mr. L. W. Meyer is a native of Germany and was trained to the business of
vine grower. He emigrated to New York in 1840, and 1846 enlisted in the
United States service for the Mexican War. He was stationed at Monterey, and
at the close of the war went to mines. In 1866 he came to Sonoma and for
five year was Su-perintendent of General Williams' property. He then
purchased property of his own, and has since been engaged in vine growing
Wine making.
Lewis W. MAYER in History of Sonoma County page 679
Mayer, Lewis W, Was born in Wurtemberg, Germany, August 18, 1823. His father
was a weaver by trade, but followed manufacturing wine, grape-growing and
farming. Lewis W. Mayer emigrated to America in 1840, arriving in
Philadelphia on July 4th of that year, where he found employment in a
weaving establishment, until the Mexican war broke out, when he enlisted, in
Philadelphia, for the regular army, being one, of the company of artillery,
commanded by Captain Tompkins, which were then attached successively to the
corps of Generals Sherman, Ord and Halleck. July 12, 1846, he embarked in
the "Lexington" for California, via Cape Horn; landed at Monterey on January
28th of the following year, and was there quartered until the close of the
Mexican war. In 1849 he proceeded to the mines, and in 1850 visited his home
in Philadelphia, shortly after coming back to California in 1852 he once
more returned to Philadelphia, and on the 29th of May, married Johanna S.
Etzel, a native of that city, who was born July 31, 1833. He here pursued
mercantile affairs for some time, but finding that the climate of California
was more suited to his health, accompanied by his wife, he once more
proceeded to that State, and on arrival located in El Dorado county, there
combining mercantile pursuits with mining and grape-growing. In 1864 he
transferred his location to Sonoma county, and, after acting as
superintendent of vineyards and wine-making for five years, in 1871 settled
on his present property, being now engaged in the culture of vines and the
making of wine. Mr. Mayer is a member of the California Pioneer Association.
His children are: Frederick D., born March 3, 1853; Rosina H., March 16,
1857; Corinna A., March 12, 1860; William J., August 31, 1862 (died the same
day); Theresa 5., December, 6, 1869; Lewis B., February 29.1872, and Bertha
Cornelia, July 27, 1874.
Lawrence MEYER in History of Sonoma County
LAWRENCE MEYER.
It is a well-known fact that those born under California skies rarely leave
their native state to make their home in any other part of the country. This
truism is borne out in the career of Mr. Meyer, for he has not only remained
in his native state, but he has never left his native county being satisfied
with its outlook and not wishing to waste time and energy on speculation as
to what other localities might offer. This well-known and successful rancher
in the vicinity of Sebastopol was born in Petaluma, Sonoma county, August
31, 1869, the son of Lawrence Meyer, a native of Germany, who came to this
country in 1849 in response to the attractions offered by the finding of
gold in California during that year. The mines of Virginia City claimed his
attention and energy for a time and from this he turned to teaming,
following the latter employment as long as he remained in the mining
district. From there he finally came to Sonoma county in 1860, and here the
remainder of his life was passed on a ranch in the vicinity, of Petaluma,
his death occurring here it 1893.
Up to the age of eighteen years Lawrence Meyer had remained at home, in his
earlier years attending the public schools at Petaluma, and afterward
working on the home ranch with his father. Though young in years it was
with the courage of a man that he started out to make his own way in the
world at the age of eighteen, empty-handed except for seventy-five cents,
which he highly prized. For a few years he worked as a ranch hand for
neighboring ranchers, laying by from his wages what was not used for the
necessaries of life, and with tile means thus accumulated he purchased a
tract of rough land. Clearing it of trees and brush, he planted it to crops,
and in this condition he sold it as a good profit. Four different tracts of
land were thus bought, cleared and put under cultivation, and as many times
he cleared a good profit on his investment. His last purchase is the ranch
which he now occupies, comprising fifty-nine acres, which he intends to make
his permanent home. Like the other tracts mentioned, this, too, was covered
with a heavy growth of timber and underbrush, and one seeing the thrifty
condition of the ranch today would have considerable difficulty in realizing
that it had been evolved from the wild timbered waste that it was when Mr.
Meyer purchased it. All of this has given place to cultivated fruit trees,
pears, peaches, plums, prunes and cherries, besides which there is a
thriving vine-yard of twenty acres, from which he gathers fifty tons of
grapes annually. Twelve acres of cherries yield annually about twenty tons,
apples sixty tons, peaches ten tons, and prunes fifteen tons. When it is
considered that all of this has been made possible on land which when Mr.
Meyer purchased it eighteen years ago was covered with a virgin forest, his
accomplishment has been little short of marvelous. He bought a ranch of one
hundred and sixteen acres on Mark West creek in 1907, and in 1910 he traded
this property for a building in San Fran-cisco containing eight flats, which
he rents. and from which he derives a good income.
In Sebastopol in 1897, Mr. Meyer was united in marriage with Miss Bertha G.
Smith, who though born in England has passed the greater part of her life in
the United States, California principally. Three children have been horn of
this marriage, Charles L., Wesley G., and William W. Fraternally Mr. Meyer
is an Odd Fellow, and in his political preferences he is a Republican.
History of the Sacramento Valley p296
THEARIS JOSEPH BOHLING
Thearis Joseph Bohling, an able and successful young financier of Butte
county, where he has been continuously identified with the banking interests
since 1916, is in full charge of the Butte County Savings Bank, which is
located on Broadway and is the oldest moneyed institution of Chico. He was
born in Salt Lake City, Utah, May 29, 1897, his parents being Joseph and
Alice May Bohling, the former of French and English lineage and the latter
of Dutch and Scotch-Irish descent. The paternal grandfather of T. J. Bohling
was captain of a French merchant ship.
Thearis J. BOHLING was a lad of six years when in 1903 he accompanied his
parents to Sacramento. California, where the family home was maintained
until 1910. During the two succeeding years he resided at Colusa, where he
completed a grammar school course by graduation with the class of 1912, and
for the past eighteen years he has made his home at Chico. He was graduated
from Heald's Business College in 1915 and the same year secured a
stenographic and clerical position in the Bark of Chico, while in 1916 he
became a clerk in the Butte County Savings Bank. He was promoted to the
position of assistant cashier in 1918, was advanced to the cashiership in
1922 and since 1927 has served as vice president, in which official capacity
he is largely contributing to the growth and success of the institution.
On the 4th of September, 1916, in Sacramento, California. Mr. Bohling was
united in marriage to Miss Bertha l. Bowman, who was born in Berkeley,
California, December 13, 1897. Her parents. Frank and Edith R.(White)Bowman
are natives of Ontario, Canada. The father is a railroad man and a
well-known Mason, having attained the thirty-second degree of the Scottish
Rite in the order. Mr. and Mrs. BOHLING are the parents of two children,
Dorothy Roberta and Thearis Edward, who are twelve and eleven years of age,
respectively. Mrs. Bohling has member-ship in Josephine Chapter of the
Eastern Star at Chico.
Since age conferred upon him the right of franchise Mr. Bohling has
supported the men and measures of the republican party. He is opposed to the
world court or any other foreign entanglements and he advocates the
modification of the Volstead law. He was made a director of the Chamber of
Commerce of Chico for 1924-1925 and again for 1930-1931. He was one of the
charter members of the Chico Exchange Club but withdrew from club activities
in 1925. Fraternally he is affiliated with the Masonic order, being an
officer of Chico Chapter, No.42, R. A. M., while in religious faith he is a
Presbyterian. Though not a member of the church, he finds communion with
the Divine in God's great out-of-doors. Mr. Bohling and his family seek
recreation principally in horseback riding through the mountain country, and
he is the owner of some fine saddle horses. He has a cabin in Butte Meadows
at an elevation of over five thousand feet.
History of Sacramento County p 967
CASPER G. AMACKER - A man of recognized worth and ability, highly respected
and honored among his many acquaintances, is Casper G. Amacker, who was born
on March 24. 1893, at Tacoma, WA, the son of Casper J. and Effie (Towles)
Amacker. His father was born in Switzerland and the mother in Huron, S.D.,
of Scotch parentage. His parents came to California in 1898. Casper J.
Amacker has been employed by the Sacramento Transportation Company for a
great many years as superintendent of the construction work in the boat
yards, and he and his wife are now residing in Sacramento.
Casper G. Amacker, the second oldest of two children, was educated in the
public schools of Sacramento. He attended Howe's Academy and was employed as
a fireman on boats for the Sacramento Transportation Company. He soon
became barge pilot and then pilot, and in 1920 received his papers as
captain and has had charge of boats ever since.
In Portland OR, on January 13, 1912, Casper G. Amacker married Miss Clarice
Johnson, born in Alameda, a native daughter of the Golden State. She is the
daughter of Christ and Clarice (Weiding) Johnson, old-timers in San
Francisco, where her father was chief engineer on the Southern Pacific
ferry-boats till his death. Her mother resides in Alameda.
Mr. and Mrs. Amacker are the parents of three children: Alberta. Dorothy,
and George, all of whom are attending school. Captain Amacker is
nonpartisan in his political affiliations. He is a Red Man, and a member of
the National Mates and Pilots' Association of America, and is very fond of
hunting, fishing, and all outdoor sports, especially baseball. He is deeply
interested in Sacramento, and does his utmost to be numbered among the
public-spirited citizens of his community.
History of Sacramento Valley page 71
AARON BECK
Among Yolo county's old and honored residents is Aaron Beck, who has been
living here continuously for nearly fifty-five years, during which period he
has set a worthy example of persistent industry, good citizen-ship and
neighborliness, and has gained the sincere respect of all who know him. He
was born in Wurtemberg, Germany, May 19, 1847, and received a good public
school education. He learned the trade of shoe-making, which he followed at
various places in Germany and Switzerland, including Constance, on Lake
Constance in Switzerland. In 1854 his father and three brothers emigrated
to the United States, locating in Newark, New Jersey. Shortly afterwards
occurred the death of the father, who had intended to form a German colony
in that state, but died soon after his arrival. Later the oldest son went
to Pennsylvania, thence went west to Nevada, and from there to Boise, Idaho,
reaching Yolo County in 1861.
Aaron Beck, who came to the New World in 1866 with his mother and three
children, is now the only surviving member of the family. They crossed the
ocean on the old sidewheel steamer "Atlantic," which on its next trip was
lost with four hundred passengers. Aaron Beck was nine-teen years of age
when he reached Newark, New Jersey, and there he engaged in making custom
shoes and later worked in a shoe factory. In October 1876, he boarded an
emigrant train, as a third class passenger, for California, and on his
arrival in this state located in the Capay Valley, Yolo County. There he
opened a custom shoe shop, and later formed a partnership with James Duncan,
opening a shoe store in Woodland in 1887. This proved an unfortunate
venture, however, as fire completely destroyed their store and stock. Mr.
Beck bought ten acres of land in the Willow Oak Park district in 1890; and
subsequently added ten acres more, securing the property in fee and clear of
incumbrance. He now has the twenty acres planted to walnut trees and juice
grapes, though formerly he had it planted to alfalfa, during which time he
was running a dairy and raising hogs. He has been a hard worker, but has
been progressive in his methods, so that he has secured maximum results and
has a highly improved and valuable property.
In 1869, in Newark, New Jersey, Mr. Beck was united in marriage to Miss Mary
E. Krumeich, who was a native of that state and a daughter of one of its
pioneer pottery makers.
To this marriage were born the following children who are living: Anna E.;
Selma, the wife of Alfred Streng, of Oakland, this state; Mrs. Joseph
Wetzel, of Oakland; Jesse J., who was born in the Capay Valley and is in
charge of the home ranch; and Francis H., of Sonoma, California. Maria,
Aaron, Jr., and Gertrude H. are deceased. The mother passed away March 10,
1912. Mr. Beck is a member of the Sons of Herman and his religious
affiliation is with the Roman Catholic Church. Kindly in manner, generous in
disposition and an earnest supporter of those things which make for the
well-being and advancement of the community, he is regarded as one of its
best citizens and popular men.
History of Yolo County p546
AARON BECK
A native of Wurtemberg, Germany, born in 1847, Mr. Beck received a thorough
education in the public schools of that section. Later he learned the
shoemaker's trade in which, upon his immigration to America in 1866, he
engaged in Newark, N. J., serving in a shoe factory ten years. He then came
to Capay, Yolo county, CA, where he remained a similar period. In 1886 he
located in Woodland, when he worked at his trade until the purchase of his
present twenty-acre ranch in Willow Oak Park in 1890.
During the past twelve years Mr. Beck has devoted his property to alfalfa.
His thrift and perseverance, united with strictly honorable methods, have
won him a place among the most influential and highly esteemed citizens of
the community.
In Newark, N. J., in 1869, Mr. Beck was married to Miss Mary E. Krumeich, a
native of that state, and eight children were born to them, as follows: Anna
E., at home; Mamie, deceased; Selma, the wife of Alfred Streng, of San
Francisco; Aaron, deceased; Jesse J.; Lavinia, Mrs. Joseph Wetzel, of
Woodland; Francis H. and Gertrude A. The mother of these children passed
away at her home March 10, 1912.
Always keenly active in public movements of worth, Mr. Beck maintains a
special interest in educational progress, observation and study having not
only added to his culture, but enabled him to keep fully abreast of the
times as well. He is a member of the Herman Sons, and also holds active
membership in the German Lutheran Church of Woodland, while the children are
members of the Catholic Church, as was his wife also.
History of San Joaquin County -page 1583
LOUIE J DELMEGE.-A pioneer merchant who has had much to do with thc
development of important commercial and realty interests in San Joaquin
County is Louie J. Delmege, of the Delmege Realty Company at Manteca He was
born in Denver, Colo., on September 30, 1886, and grew up to enjoy a good
common school and business education acquired while he lived in Colorado,
Iowa and North Dakota, prior to coming to California. He was assistant
station agent at Knox, N. D., and it was there that he saw some stray copies
of the Sunset Magazine and read of the superior attractions of the Golden
State. In 1905 he removed with his family to the Coast, and immediately
invested in a ranch two and one-half miles east of Manteca which he later
developed into a fine vineyard. Forty dollars per acre was considered very
reasonable in those days for raw land, hut today that type of farm-tract
cannot be bought for less than $400 per acre, due for the most part to the
productivity resulting from irrigation. Mr. Delmege has never lost a whit of
his enthusiastic devotion to Manteca which he characterizes as the one city
in this valley which is four-sided, that is, it is bounded on all sides by
fertile lands and highly-productive ranches.
One of the first important events in the early history of Manteca was the
establishing of "The Toggery," a first-class men's furnishing store on
Yosemite Avenue, stocked and opened by Mr. Delmege, who had a partner, J. J.
Rawleigh. They began in 1909, and were active and successful together for
nine years, or until 1918, when Mr. Delmege disposed of his share of the
concern. The following year he established the Delmege Realty Company, with
an office at the corner of Vine and Yosemite streets. There he conducts a
real estate and insurance business, operating strictly according to modern
business methods. He has important interests in various real estate and
ranch-holdings in or near Manteca; is a member of the State Realty Board of
California; and belongs to the Chamber of Commerce of Manteca, in which he
is also a live wire.
At Stockton, in 1911, Mr. Delmege was married to Miss Jessie Ruby, the
accomplished daughter of Mrs. H. E. Ruby, who now resides at Manteca at the
home of her daughter. Mr. Delmege is a Republican, and a member of the
Modern Woodmen of America.
History of Monterey and Santa Cruz Counties CA page 239
SUNDAY FARAOLA.
Sunday Faraola, an enterprising business man whose progressive methods and
reliable standards have made him a dependable factor in industrial and
financial circles, is the genial and accommodating manager of the Western
California Fish Company, with their conveniently located offices on the City
Wharf at 74 Washington street, Santa Cruz. He was born in this city, April
6, 1873, and his parents were Dominic and Bessie (Herman) Faraola. The
father came to Santa Cruz in the year that California was admitted to the
Union, and with A. Palidini and T. Simmons was a pioneer among the first
foreign fishermen on this coast. At first they had to fish from rowboats,
but before Mr. Faraola died, in 1877, he saw a newer era, when fishing was
far less a hardship, if also less a sport. Mrs. Faraola, the devoted wife
and mother, is still living at the age of seventy-one years, an interesting
representative of an old family, once owners of a great Spanish grant.
Sunday Faraola attended the Santa Cruz public schools, and at the age of
eighteen entered the service of the H. Cowle Company, doing a lime and
cement business a Santa Cruz. He remained with them for eighteen years and
then joined his brother, John Faraola, in handling fish both at retail and
wholesale. They did a thriving trade together for several years, both being
favorites. After their partner-ship was dissolved, Sunday Faraola continued
with the Western California Fish Company that took over their fish trade,
and became the local manager for the concern.
On the 4th of April, 1897, Mr. Faraola was married, at Santa Cruz, to Miss
Rose Molares, also a native of this city, and a member of another old-time
family. Several children were born to them. Percy was a member of the famous
Rainbow Division in the World war, and was gassed in France; yet he was
fated to die from the effects of an automobile accident after his discharge
and return home. His funeral was one of the largest ever held in Santa
Cruz, attesting to his own popularity and the high esteem enjoyed by the
family. Leland is the only son now living. Mr. Faraola is an Eagle and it is
safe to say that his standing in that well-known order is enviable.
History of Monterey and Santa Cruz Counties CA page 245
JOHN FARAOLA.
A popular enterprise that must prove most interesting is that of John
Faraola, who owns and manages the pleasure boats putting out from Pleasure
Wharf at Santa Cruz, in which town he was born, January 18, 1869, the son of
Dominic and Bessie (Herman) Faraola. The father was a pioneer who arrived
here about 1850, ac-companying T. Simmons and A. Palidino, early fishermen.
He passed away nearly fifty years ago, but Mrs. Faraola has survived him,
the center of a circle of devoted friends.
John Faraola obtained his education in the country schools and when only
twelve years of age became a bell boy in a hotel. He was gradually advanced
and continued to he associated with hotels until many years afterward. He
started work in the old Douglas House and then entered the service of the
Pacific Ocean House. When a lad of fifteen he showed some proficiency as a
baseball player and getting a position at the St. James Hotel as night
clerk, he was enabled to play with the J. W. Spring Base Ball Club. He also
spent a year at the Vendome Hotel, in San Jose; was with the Lewis House at
Watsonville for three years; and for two years was at the Mansion House in
the same city.
His next venture was in the business of leasing and running pleasure boats
at Santa Cruz for three years and then he and his brother, Sunday Faraola
established a wholesale and retail fish business. When this partnership was
dissolved, our subject took the pleasure boat concession, and now he has
five fine vessels. They are used for outings by the general public and
occasionally for the more prosaic occupations of the fish-packers. Mr.
Faraola maintains a keen interest in athletic sports, and this is second
only to his devotion to business. He supports the republican party.
Mr. Faraola married, in Santa Cruz, in September, 1898, Miss Hattie Maxey,
of Rockland, Maine, and their family consists of three children: Eva, John
Faraola, Jr., and Marcelia, now Mrs. Francis Murray, of Los Angeles. There
are also three grandchildren.
History of San Joaquin County p. 1582
CHARLES G. DELMEGE.--Among the ranchers of San Joaquin County who by strict
attention to business have been able to retire from active work, is Charles
G. Delmege of Stockton. He was born in Bristol, Kendall County, IL on
November 22, 1846, and at the age of seventeen, in company with two
schoolmates, ran away from home and enlisted for service in the Civil War he
also had two brothers who served in the army, one enlisting in 1861, and all
served in the same company. On February 10, 1864, he enlisted under Capt.
F. W. Sowerby in Company H of the Ninth Illinois Cavalry in command of Col.
A. G. Brackett, with General Hatch as division commander, the brigade known
as Hatch's cavalry. Three days after joining his regiment he was under fire
with the Army of the Tennessee. being engaged against Forrest until ordered
to cross the river to fight General Hood's army. The only two battles he was
in were Franklin and Nashville. While engaged against Hood the army was
under command of Gen. Schofield; later was under Gen. Thomas; although in
active service all the time he came out without a scratch.
His service continued until October 31, 1865, when he was mustered out, and
then returned to his home in Illinois. In 1867, removing to Iowa, he bought
a farm near Afton, consisting of eighty acres; his father and one of his
brothers also owned farms in that location. He spent twelve years on his
place, which was devoted to the raising of grain, then he removed to Denver.
Colo., and became interested in politics. He was appointed by the mayor and
served four years as a member of the police department, and then for two
years was city jailer. On account of a change in administration Mr. Delmege
left the employ of the police department, and at the current election worked
for a particular candidate for county sheriff, who was elected and who, in
appreciation for services rendered, appointed Mr. Delmege county jailer,
serving two years.
Trading his Denver property for a farm, he then went to Boulder, Colo.,
farming near there for four years, then resided in Boulder for two years. In
the fall of 1899 he was sent to Des Moines as state agent for the Anchor
Mutual Fire Insurance Company, being appointed by his brother, who was
president of the company; then he was in the lumber business for two years
at Larimore, Iowa, and was also interested in the real estate business
there. From lowa he removed to Knox, N. D., and went into the real estate
business. and while residing there took up government land, which he farmed
for four years; then in 1906 he came to California and bought a ten-acre
tract of land at Manteca, which he planted to wine grapes. While his vines
were maturing he conducted a poultry business, and after twelve years sold
out and moved to Stockton, where he has since resided.
The marriage of Mr. Delmege occurred at Afton, Iowa, on November 8, 1870,
and united him with Miss Amanda Keating, a native of Ohio, and they are the
parents of two sons: Clarence A., of Sheridan, Wyo., is married and has
three girls, one of whom has a daughter; and Louie J. is married and lives
at Manteca, Mr. Delmege is past commander of Rawlins Post No. 23, G. A. R.
of Stockton, while Mrs. Delmege is a member of the Woman's Relief Corps and
the Ladies' Circle of the G. A. R., and during the World War was an active
Red Cross worker. Both Mr. and Mrs. Delmege attend the Christian Science
Church of Stockton.
History of Merced, Stanislaus, Calaveras, Tuolumne & Mariposa Counties page 375
IRA HARRIS, Jr.-The subject of this sketch is a native of Rhode Island, and
dates his birth at the old town of Smithfield, November 18, 1848. He was
reared and educated in his native State, and there learned the trade of
machine blacksmith. His parents, Ira, Sr., and Fannie (Clark) Harris, were
also born in Rhode Island, and were of English extraction. His mother is
deceased. His father, now well advanced in years, is still hale and hearty,
and fills the place of a mechanic in the shops of his son.
Mr. Harris, Jr., came to California in 1884, and established his present
business at Modesto some three years ago. His shops contain several
forges and turning lathes, and are equipped with all the necessary machinery
required in a general repair shop. He is a thorough mechanic in every
respect, and is doing a thriving and constantly increasing business.
He was married in Rhode Island in 1868, to Miss Mary Mulholland, also a
native of that State. They have six children, namely: William, Emma,
Hannah, Mary, Ira and George.
Mr. Harris casts his vote and influence with the Democratic party.
Socially, he is connected with the F. & A. M., Mount Moriah Lodge, No. 8,
of Lincoln, Rhode Island. He has passed the chairs in the blue lodge, and
has advanced to the Royal Arch degree.
History of Solano and Napa Counties page 637
JOHN L. ROWLEY.
Although a young man with many years before him, John L. Rowley has already
shown himself capable of achieving success from the way he has managed his
ranch. He is a native of Capell valley, Napa county, born September 27,
1874, a son of George W. and Martha H. (Loftis) Rowley. The former came to
California via the Isthmus in 1860. and the latter. a native of Arkansas,
came with her parents across the plains while an infant. the familv locating
in Solano county. John L. Rowley has one sister, Lily R., the wife of L. C.
Carden, a native of Tennessee; with their two children, Merle W. and Loleta,
they reside in Oakland.
In 1909 Mr. Rowley bought the old place of his parents, consisting of one
hundred and fifty acres, of which sixty-five acres are under cultivation,
four acres in alfalfa and the balance in hay and pasture. He keeps a few
cattle and horses for domestic use. Mr. Rowley married Orinda Sprague, a
native of Maine, and they have one daughter, Lilian O. Politically he is a
Republican.
History of Siskiyou County CA 1881 page 209 (actually p208 or 209a)
WILLIAM SULLAWAY is a son of Joseph and Susan (Sargent) Sullaway, who were natives of New
Hampshire, his father having been horn at Bellows Falls, and his mother at
Hookset. They reared a family of twelve children, viz.: John, Joseph, Susan,
Jacob, Dorethea, Jason, Sarah, Harriett, Benjamin (who died, and was
followed by another son, whom they called Benjamin, and who also died),
Mary, and William, the subject of this sketch, who was born at Springfield,
New Hampshire, May 16, 1823.
When thirteen years of age he went to Massachusetts, where he engaged in
business in a public house, near Cambridge, in a village called Fresh Pond.
From here be removed to Rhode Island, and on the eighth day of August, 1845,
was united in marriage to Miss Mary Parker, daughter of John H. and Armah
Parker, who were natives of Goshen, New Hampshire, where Mrs. Sullaway was
born. For some time after marriage he continued to drive stage from
Pawtucket to Providence.
In the month of October, 1849, he sailed from Fall River, Massachusetts, for
California, on the vessel Delaware, intending to come around Cape Horn, but
owing to bad seamanship was compelled to abandon that route, and put in to
the West India Islands, and then by way of the Isthmus to San Francisco,
where they landed in April, 1850. He went then to Stockton, and began
driving an ox-team at $200 per month; afterwards mining for a short time in
Calaveras county, and in 1852 removed to Siskiyou county. He engaged in
mining, then started an express wagon between Yreka and Hawkinsville, and
was the founder of the pioneer stage line from Yreka to Shasta, in 1857,
which runs via the Sacramento river road, being carried from Soda Springs to
Shasta by pack-mules. After two and one-half years he closed this line, and
started one through to Red Bluff. Tired of stage managing he sold out,
purchased the place he now owns, at that time, and since, a station on the
line called Forest Ranch, beautifully located in a fine pine forest, near
the base of Mount Shasta. A view of the residence can be seen on another
page. Mr. and Mrs. Sulla-way have reared a family of five children, viz.:
Joseph Edwin, now at Kelton, Utah, John W., Charles F., Mary, and Ned F.
From NDGW he died July in Sisson, Mount Shasta, July 13 1893.
History of Solano and Napa Counties CA page 1007.
HENRY BEDDOE.
A native of Utah, Henry Beddoe was born in Salt Lake City June 26,1853. one
of the seven children born to his parents, William and Mary B. Beddoe. The
children were as follows: Henry, Benjamin, Elinor, Margarette, Mary A.,
Naomi and Margaret. Mary A. married M. Frazer, a native of Indiana, and six
children were born to them. Margaret became the wife of Park H. Hall.
Henry Beddoe remained in his birthplace until his parents moved back to St.
Joseph, Mo., settlement being afterward made in Rolla, Phelps county, that
state, and he continued under the parental roof until he was forty-five
years of age. In Missouri be married Ella Moore, a native of New Jersey. and
nine children were born to them. as follows: Daisy E., Pansy L. William W.
Benjamin E., Thomas H., Everett E., Adolph R., Morris and Roy R.
William W. married Hannah Wiley, of Rolla, Mo., and they have three
children; Benjamin E. married Anna Lowe, of Hannibal, Mo., and they have two
children; Thomas H. married Edna Stone, and they have two children; Daisy E.
married James A. Stephens, a minister residing in San Francisco.
Henry Beddoe came to California in 1898 and purchased one hundred and sixty
acres of land in Chiles valley. He died in the year 1906, and the work of
the farm is now carried on by the children. The ranch is divided as
follows: Thirty acres of grapes, eighty acres of pasture and timber, fifteen
acres of alfalfa and fifteen acres of grain. The orchard consists
principally of peaches and prunes, from which a good yield is obtained.
Politically Mr. Beddoe was a Republican and fraternally he was a member of
the Odd Fellows. The Beddoe family has done much to promote the welfare of
the community and has materially added to the progress of the county.
History of Santa Barbara County page 489
One of Santa Maria's greatly esteemed citizens is Paul M. Hiratzka, who, in
both business and welfare activities, has shown himself capable and
industrious, so that his record is one of which he has no reason to he
ashamed. He was born in Japan on June 14,1888, and is a son of Mankichi and
Nobu (Fukushima) Hiratzka. The father, who was born in Japan in about 1840,
died in that country in 1905. He was a farmer and brewer, and was well known
and liked in the Fukuokaken for his interest in public affairs. His widow,
who was born in Japan in about 1868, is now living in Tokio. She reared four
children, of whom Paul M. is the only one in Santa Barbara County.
Paul M. Hiratzka was given the advantage of an excellent scholastic
training, having attended the grammar schools of his own country and Rikyo
University of Tokio, which in the United States is known as St. Paul's
College, a missionary institution of the Episcopal church, and from which he
was graduated in 1912. On leaving the school in Tokio in 1912, Mr. Hiratzka
went to work for the Singer Sewing Machine Company, serving about a year as
auditor. In 1913 he came to the United States, locating in San Antonio,
Texas, where he was associated with N. T. Wilson in the automobile business
until 1915. In that year he moved to Detroit where he entered the University
of Detroit, where he was graduated in 1918. He then took a position with the
Continental Motors of Detroit, with which concern he was associated until
1921. He then came to California and lived in San Francisco and later, Los
Angeles, until 1927. During this period he devoted his efforts to general
welfare work among Japanese as general secretary of the Central Japanese
Association of Southern California. In 1927 he moved to Santa Maria and
engaged in the produce business, which he carried on until 1934, when he
associated himself with H. Y. Minami & Sons. at Guadalupe where he remains.
During 1926-27 Mr. Hiratzka was associated with the Japanese Consul in Las
Angeles in an advisory capacity. That Consul, 0. Hashi, is now a
vice-minister of foreign affairs in Manchukuo.
In 1912, in Japan, Mr. Hiratzka was married to Miss Keiko Nagano, a native
of Japan, where her mother is still living. her father being deceased. Mrs.
Hiratzka is now living in Santa Maria where she is serving as treasurer for
the Woman's Aid Society in the Japanese Union Church. To Mr. and Mrs.
Hiratzka have been born three children, namely: Tomiharu ("Tom") T., born in
Japan in 1913, graduated from Leland Stanford University in 1937 and is now
taking the medical course in that institution; Amy. born in San Francisco in
1922, is in the Santa Maria High School; and Jordan F.. born in Los Angeles
in 1923, is a student in the Santa Maria High School. Mr. Hiratzka is a
communicant of the Protestant Episcopal church being the treasurer of St.
Peter's congregation in Santa Maria. He is a man of high ideals, is cordial
and sincere in his social relations, and since coming to this country he has
won a host of warm personal friends.
History of Tulare and Kings Counties page 708
HENRY F. ROCK That progressive merchant and real estate investor of Armona, Kings county,
Cal., Henry F. Rock, was born in Shasta county, in this state, September 12,
1870. His youth and the earlier years of his manhood were passed on a farm
and he was educated in the public school in his home district. When he was
about twenty-nine years old he located on a farm in Fresno county, which he
operated with varying success for some years. By this time he had made up
his mind that he would be a merchant and had saved money with which to go
into business. Buying the 0. B. Hanan store at Centerville, Fresno county,
he conducted it four years, meanwhile farming on rented land in the
vicinity. In 1907 he closed out the merchandise business to Messrs. Elliott
& Coleman of Conejo, Fresno county, and came to Armona, Kings county, to
take over the well established mercantile enterprise of Muller Brothers, who
had been trading here five years. He has since handled the business with
increasing success. From his merchandising he has found time to interest
himself in real estate, and has acquired an interest in town and country
property. in different alfalfa ranches and in a farm of seventy-eight acres.
Besides, he is a stockholder in the commission house of Zaiser Brothers, Los
Angeles.
Fraternally, Mr. Rock affiliates with Lucerne lodge No. 275, I.0.0.F.,
Hanford. He married, November 6. 1890, Miss Lora Burner, at Glenburn, Shasta
county. She was born in Colusa county, and has borne him four children, only
one of whom survives, Carl L. who was educated in the public school of
Armona and Heald's Business College at Fresno, and is now engaged in the
bakery business at Armona. Taking a deep and abiding interest in the uplift
and development of his community, Mr. Rock has proven himself dependable
when demand is made for aid in movements for the public good.
History of the State of CA & Bio Record of San Joaquin Valley CA page 1306
ISAAC HENRY WASH. Among those who have come to Fresno within the last decade
is Isaac Henry Wash, the owner of a fine sixty-acre farm eight and a half
miles southeast of Fresno, where he is profitably engaged in the raisin
business, having twenty-six acres of bearing vines. A worthy descendant of
a distinguished family of Virginia, the lineage of Mr. Wash is traced back
to John Wash, the great-grandfather, who fought in the Revolutionary war
under Washington. He was a native of Virginia, as was also his son. John
Wash, Jr., who died in that state about 1847. From there the family moved
into Kentucky, and it was within the borders of the latter state that both
parents of Mr. Wash were born. His father, John Martin Alexander Wash, was
born in 1820, and his wife, whose maiden name was Annie Adams, was born
November 8, 1822. Some time after marriage this esteemed couple went west
and settled in Lewis county, MO., where the father died July 24, 1844.
During his life he followed the occupations of farmer and miller, and was so
engaged up to the time of his death. He left but two children, Isaac Henry
and Lucy, and the latter is now deceased. In 1855 the mother contracted a
second matrimonial alliance, this time with Enoch Hanshorough, who died in
1863. His widow now makes her home with her daughter, Mrs. Annie Mathiesen
of Billings, Okla.
Born October 20, 1841, six miles from La-grange, Lewis county. Mo., Mr. Wash
spent his boyhood in the vicinity of his birthplace. His education was limited. At
sixteen he left home to make his own way in the world. and the following
year found him in Texas. While there he followed the cattle business three
years in Collin county, and in 1861 west of Montague, following similar
work, Upon the outbreak of the Civil war he enlisted in Company F.
Fourteenth Texas Cavalry as a private, and served until December 31, 1862
Participating in the battle of Murfreesboro, Tenn. during which he fell, he
was left on the field for dead. At this time he was serving under division
commander General McCown. Being picked up by Federals, he was taken to their
hospital and afterward returned to Texas. He subsequently returned to
Marion county, Mo., and followed farm pursuits there for a couple of year.
November 7, 1865, he was united in marriage with Mary S. Taylor, who was
born in Missouri in 1844. The year following their marriage the young couple
moved to Knox county, and this continued to be their home until 1890.
Disposing of his farm in December of that year, Mr Wash came to California,
locating for a time near Fresno, but in the spring of 1891 he purchased the
farm which is still his home and which to-day ranks among the best improved
in his vicinity. He has made many improvements on this place. Of his
children, one is deceased and the others are all residents of Fresno county.
They are as follows:
A memorial and biographical history of the counties of Santa Barbara, San
Luis Obispo and Ventura CA Page 607
DURRELL STOKES GREGORY was born in Virginia, June 14, 1825. About the year
1838 he removed to Cobb County, Georgia, and was educated in Marietta. He
read law under ex-Governor McDonald, and was admitted to practice under
special enactment of the Legislature, on account of being under the lawful
age. Afterward he was in partnership with Governor McDonald until starting
for California, in 1850, he first located in Santa Cruz, in the practice of
law; thence he went to Monterey, from which place he was sent as a delegate
to the Peace Convention, which met at Charleston, in 1860. About tile year
1862 he formed a law partnership with P. K. Woodside, which continued many
years. In 1872 he removed to the new town of Salinas, where he remained
until 1882, when he came to San Luis Obispo, although for several years
previous he had maintained an office here. His law practice here grew
rapidly, and in the course of time he was selected by Governor Stoneman to
fill the position of Superior Judge, made vacant by the death of Judge
McMurtrie, which occurred February 11, 1883. At the expiration of the term
of this appointment, Judge Gregory was a candidate before the people and was
elected to the Superior Judgeship, which position he held until his death,
which occurred at 3:30 p. M., June 12, 1889. Judge Gregory's political
services to the State of California were varied and invariably in the
interests of good government and order. He was twice a member of the Senate,
from the district composed of Monterey and Santa Cruz counties, and of the
Assembly from Monterey County.
Early in the year 1888 the Judge began rapidly to fail, being troubled with
a disease which rendered him practically helpless; and so he had been on his
back most of the time for a year, and utterly unable to assist himself
during the four mouths prior to his demise. He was a most patient sufferer,
always gentle in spite of the great pain which racked his every bone. For a
long time the Judge had realized his helpless physical condition and looked
forward to the end with calmness. A man of most loving and affectionate
disposition, ever true to his family and friends, he was universally
popular. As a lawyer he was bright, alert and accurate, always going into
court thoroughly conversant with every detail of the case in hand. Although
not a flowery orator, he was clear, concise and convincing in argument, and
was generally favorably regarded by jurists. As a judge he was strict, but
invariably courteous and impartial. A man of the strictest integrity, no
man nor combination of circumstances could induce him to swerve from a
position he knew to be right.
Judge Gregory was married August 20, 1876, to Miss Amelia Hartnell, whose
family were early pioneers of California.
History of the state of CA and bio record of Santa Cruz, San Benito,
Monterey and San Luis Obispo page 478
PETER TOGNAZZINI.
Left fatherless when he was only five years of age, Mr.Tognazzini was
deprived of advantages that he would have otherwise enjoyed. However, in
spite of hardships and obstacles, in spite of having to start for himself in
a strange county without friends, he has gained a success that reflects
credit upon his sterling Swiss characteristics. Since 1860 he has lived in
California, having during that year emigrated from Switzerland where he
was born in 1852. The voyage was made via Boston and the Isthmus of Panama
to San Francisco, where he arrived Mar 20,1860. At first he worked in the
employ of dairymen in Marin and Sonoma counties, and thus gained a knowledge
of the business, as carried on in the west.
During 1873 Mr. Tognazzini came to San Luis Obispo county, where he has
since made his home. Renting land on Little Cayucos creek, he stocked it
with a herd of dairy cows, and from that small beginning he has built up a
large dairy business. As soon as he had the necessary means he purchased
land. In 1880 he bought two hundred and twenty acres to which he later
added two hundred acres. At this writing he owns six hundred and fifteen
acres of fine land near Guadaloupe, of which in 1901 he had two hundred and
fifty acres in alfalfa for his dairy cows. He was the first in all the
vicinity to attempt the raising of alfalfa and his success proved that his
judgment was not amiss in believing it would he a profitable crop.
Since becoming a property owner Mr. Tognazzini has given close attention to
the improvement of his land. He has planted trees, including a number of
fine palms. In 1890 he erected a residence which is unrivaled among the
homes on the Little Cayucos. His dairy house is provided with the modern
improvements. Between one and two hundred cows of the Holstein breed form
the dairy and the butter produced is of such a fine quality that it has
several times been awarded premiums at county fairs. No one is more familiar
with the dairy business than Mr Tognazzini and his thorough acquaintance
with the industry is proving financially profitable to him. The dairymen
throughout his county recognize in him one of the leading representatives of
their occupation and his influence is everywhere acknowledged. He is a
director of the Dairymen's Union of San Francisco. As president and a
director of the Guadaloupe Creamery Company at Guadaloupe and president of
the Union Creamery at Morro, he is closely associated with two growing
industries that are proving helpful to their localities. These interests,
while important and far-reaching, do not represent the limit of Mr.
Tognazzini's influence. In addition he is a director of the San Luis
Commercial Bank, the San Luis Obispo-Savings Bank of San Luis Obispo and the
Swiss-American Bank of San Francisco.
Since coming to America and entering into citizenship in our county Mr.
Tognazzini has been actively associated with local Republican affairs. As a
member of the county central committee and as executive member from the
Cayucos district, he has done much to promote the welfare of his party here,
and he also represented his district as a delegate to the state convention
which nominated Hon. H. H. Markham for governor of California. For several
years he has been a school trustee. Fraternally he is connected with San
Simeon Lodge No. 196, F & A. M.; San Luis Obispo Chapter No.62, R. A. M.;
and San Luis Obispo Commandery No. 27, K. T.
In the lodge he is a past master and has been a delegate to the state grand
lodge. At the time the proposition was made to build a railroad from
Templeton to Cayucos he was deeply interested in the project, took a
personal interest in the scheme and contributed toward the fund for the
making of the survey. In 1881 he married Miss Mary Gaxiola, by whom he has
five children: Irene, Romeo, Juliet, Mabel and Benjamin.
History of the New California - 1905 p721
ABRAM BLOCK.
Abram Block, well known as a representative of the fruit-shipping industry
of central California makes his home in Santa Clara. He was born on the
12th of February, 1830, in Bohemia, and is a son of Zalma and Maria (Kafka)
Block, both of whom were natives of that country and in their family were
four sons and four daughters, of whom Abram is the youngest and the only one
now surviving. The father was a farmer by occupation and thus provided for
the wants of his wife and children.
Abram Block pursued his education in the private school at Schwihau,
Bohemia, continuing his studies until he reached the age of fourteen years.
In the spring of 1845 he came to the United States, and going to Missouri he
there continued his education as a public-school student for a brief
pe-riod. Later he entered upon his business career as a clerk in a
dry-goods and groceries establishment in St. Louis, Missouri, and continued
in that trade until I852 when he came to California. Men from every walk
and station in life were flocking to this state, attracted by its business
possibili-ties brought about through the discovery of gold and the great
tide of emigration to the far west. Mr. Block came by way of New Orleans and
the Isthmus route. He too sought a fortune in the gold fields, but after
spending a short time in the mines he left the search of the precious metal
to others and engaged in dealing in general miners' supplies in Nevada City.
In 1855 he removed to San Francisco, although he still maintained his
business in Nevada for a time. In the former place he turned his attention
to manufacturing enterprises. He was interested in what was known as the
Pioneer woolen factory, which he conducted with success for six years. In
February, 1878, he removed to Santa Clara, where he has since been engaged
in fruit-raising and shipping. With keen foresight he recognized that this
was one of the coming industries of the state, and prepared to meet the
demands that would arise in this direction. Levi A. Gould shipped the first
fruit from California from San Francisco in the year 1869, and this has
always been one of the leading fruit producing centers of the state. The
fruit sent out by Mr. Gould was raised in the orchard now owned by Mr.
Block. Mr. Gould, who originally owned the orchard, was one of the pioneer
orchardists in this section of the country, and was a very active and
enterprising man. doing much for the development of the fruit industry in
this section. He not only raised fruit, but he operated the first dryer and
was also an extensive manufacturer of vinegar. He came to San Francisco in
1853. Mr. Block's sales of fruit are extensive and he annually sends to the
citv markets of the west and of the east many boxes of pears and plums. his
products being considered among the best in the state. His orchard comprises
one hundred and eighty-seven acres and he has eighty acres in the homestead
place, while adjoining property is controlled by him in his fruit-raising
industry.
HISTORY OF YUBA AND SUTTER COUNTIES page 903
JAMES EDMAN PLASKETT.-A retired rancher who, through untiring effort and
energy, close study, and careful attention to vital interests has made a
place for himself among the men worthy of mention in the making of the
Golden State, is James Edman Plaskett, who was born either in Nova Scotia or
New Brunswick, Canada. His father being engaged in shipping lumber, our
subject has never known just where they were residing when he was born on
May 13, 1838, in that country. His parents were Joseph and Lucretia
(Wallace) Plaskett, natives of Carlisle. England, and Canada, respectively.
As stated above, Joseph Plaskett, the father was engaged in shipping lumber
from Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Maine to England. In 1842 the family
moved to Wayne County, Pa., where he continued in his lumber and farming
business. Mrs. Plaskett was of Scotch descent. She passed away when her son
James was a young lad. Joseph Plaskett came to California in 1855 via the
Panama route, and was laid away to rest in the Golden State. Mr. and Mrs.
Joseph Plaskett were the parents of nine children: William, deceased, who
was a major in the 144th Regiment of New York Volunteer Infantry and served
in the army of the Potomac during the Civil War; Sarah; Jane; two other
girls, who died in infancy; Peter; James Edman, the subject of this review;
John; and Henry.
James Edman Plaskett attended the district schools in Pennsylvania and
finished his education at Laurel Hill Seminary in Deposit, N. Y. However,
he received the greater part of his knowledge from the school of experience.
He is vitally interested in all progressive movements and is very well
posted on all of the important topics of the day. In 1857 he started out
for himself, and came to California via Panama, taking passage on the Moses
Taylor from New York to Aspinwall and on the Golden Age from Panama to San
Francisco, his destination being Forbestown. He came up the Sacramento
River as far as Sacramento, where he stopped for a few days; and then he
journeyed up the Feather River by boat to Marysville, where he landed. From
there he came by stage via Oroville to Forbestown, and passed through Yuba
and Butte Counties en route. He was so impressed by the wonderful country
that after he had his fill of mining he determined to remain in California
and locate in the Sacramento Valley. Mr. Plaskett mined from 1857 to 1864 in
Empire Hill and other places in Plumas, Butte and Yuba Counties, also
traveling over parts of Nevada and Arizona. When he returned to Sutter
County, he preempted a quarter-section of government land five miles west of
Yuba City, adding additional land from time to time until he acquired 800
acres. At first he raised whatever seemed the most profitable; but later he
raised grain, and of recent years he has developed this land into a
profitable orchard and vinyard.
James Edman Plaskett returned to New York and married Miss Emma Bortle on
May 13. 1868, in Hancock, Delaware County. She was born in Greene County.
N. Y., and reared in Delaware County, the same State, and was a daughter of
Daniel and Rose Bortle. Mr. and Mrs. Plaskett became the parents of eight
children: Isabelle, Mrs. W. W. Brawn, of San Francisco ; May. Mrs. Jess
Flanery, of Yuba City ; James Wallace, residing at home ; Gertrude, Mrs. J.
M Maynard, also on the home place ; Bertha, Mrs. C. P. Reische, of Meridian
; Sylvester L., William and Henry, all residing at home. They are the
grandparents of twelve children. James Wallace was united in marriage with
Miss Myra Elizabeth Poe on July 3, 1905, at Marysyille. She was born at
Lakeport, Lake County, a daughter of Alonzo and Elizabeth Poe, and was
reared from the time she was four years old at Lincoln, Placer County. Of
recent years James Edman Plaskett has given portions of the home place to
his children, but the land still remains in the family. A stanch Republican,
Mr. Plaskett is a loyal supporter of the principles of that party.
James died at age 88 in Sutter County on Jul 31 1926. He was survived by his
wife, Emma (BORTLE), and Isabelle, Mrs. W. W. BRAWN, San Francisco; May,
Mrs. S. J. FLANERY (Jess), Yuba City; Bertha, Mrs. C. P. REICHE, Meridan;
Gertrude, Mrs. J. M. MAYNARD, Sutter County; and James Wallace; Sylvester
L.; William H. and Henry L. PLASKETT all of Sutter County.
H. E. PLASKETT in the History of Sutter County p122
Some more snippets:
Francis M. PLASKETT died age 79 in Alameda on Nov 11 1939.
Major Wm Pillsbury PLASKETT was a major in the 144th Regiment of New York
Volunteer Infantry and served in the Army of the Potomoc during the Civil
War.
He was born in 1824 in New Brunswick, CAN, his parents were Joseph and
Lucretia (WALLACE) PLASKETT, natives of Carllisle, England and Canada.
His father was engaged in shipping lumber form Nova Scotia, New Brunswick
and Maine to England. In 1842 the family moved to Wayne Co. Penn. William
was the eldest of nine children, Sarah, Jane, (the other girls died in
infancy), Peter, James, Edman, John and Henry.
Lucretia PLESKETT passed away in PA in about 1854. In 1885 Joseph came to CA
via the Panama Route to join his brother, Peter. Joseph's name appears in
the Martin Knox business ledger at Brownsville as buying supplies.
James followed in 1857 and settled in Sutter County.
The Major followed in 1875 and settled in Forbestown where he built a saw
mill. His wife was Jane Ann (ROSE). They have two children: Minnie and
Peter Luther, both educated in PA. Minnie married Thomas G. HODGKINS, whose
father was "Chips" HODGKINS, the famous Wells Fargo messenger from 1851 to
1892. They had a family of 5 children: William, Guy, Ira, Peter and Earl.
Peter Luther PLASKETT was twenty years in 1875 and may have come to CA
before his father as he was an engineer for a steamship company that
operated on the Pacific Coast.
Evidently Peter was visiting his father in Forbestown where he met Julia
LAGUE who came to CA in 1880 with her family from S?tton, CAN. In January
1883, Julia took the stage from Forbestown to Oroville, a train to San
Francisco, and a ship to Seattle, where she married Peter Luther PLASKETT on
January 22, 1883. Peter and Julia had seven children.
The Major died in San Francisco when he was hit by a cable car. He is buried
in the Presido.
History of the State of California and Bio records of Coast Counties CA p489
GEORGE E. DE GOLIA. As lawyer, politician and social leader, the Hon.
George E. De Golia has held a position of prominence and importance in the
city of Oakland for more than a quarter of a century, and is widely known
and honored throughout the entire state. A native son of California, he was
born at Placerville May 3, 1857, the son of Darwin De Golia, an early
settler, and was reared throughout his boyhood in his native locality.
Ambitious and enterprising he became a page in the assembly at the age of
fourteen years, and with economy and thrift unusual in one so young he saved
his earnings, with which he contemplated paying his way through college. At
sixteen years of age he entered the state university, and upon his
graduation four years later was fifth in a class of twenty-six members,
standing first in the college of engineering, which course he took there as
well as a literary course. In 1878 he became managing editor of the Oakland
Daily Transcript, on which newspaper he remained about a year.
Upon the election of the Hon. Henry Vrooman in March, 1878, to the office of
district attorney, Mr. De Golia entered his office as clerk and student and
with unusual application was admitted to the bar in the following year. In
1879 he was chosen secretary of the senate judiciary committee, after which
he practiced law until 1883. He was then appointed assistant district
attorney of Alameda county, which position he held for six years. Later he
formed a partnership with Mr. Vrooman which continued until the death of the
latter, when he succeeded to an extensive practice.
From the time he cast his first ballot, Mr. De Golia has been interested in
the political life of the community, continuing an active participant in
public affairs up to 1894, and after the death of Mr. Vrooman was considered
the Republican leader in Alameda county. He attended the National Convention
a Chicago in 1888, being actively interested in national affairs as well as
local. In the line of his profession he has been a member and secretary of
the Oakland Bar Association since its organization, and is a charter member
of the Athenian Club. Fraternally he is one of the most prominent men in the
city, holding membership with Oakland Command-Cry, K. T., as well as the
Scottish Rite branch of Masonry, and the Mystic Shrine. In 1890 he
organized a lodge of Elks in Oakland, of which he served as exalted ruler
for several years, also representing the order in the Grand Lodge in the
east at several annual sessions. He is a leading member of Piedmont Parlor,
Native Sons of the Golden West, and has been delegate to the Grand Lodge of
that order since 1892.
The marriage of Mr. De Golia united him with Caroline Barroilhet Rabe, a
daughter of Dr. Rabe, distinguished in the early history of California, and
of this union were born two children, a son and daughter, namely: Ellis and
Noelle. Prominent in Oakland society, Mr. De Golia has long been a leading
member of the Oakland Golf Club, and is one of the directing members of the
Claremont County Club, as well as taking an active interest in athletics,
being especially skillful with the foils. As a successful lawyer he has
the respect and esteem of both confreres and clients, both safely trusting
their interests to the honor and integrity of the man who has proved himself
in their midst. It is justly a matter of pride with him that no lawyer has
ever asked him for a written stipulation. The work in which he is now
engaged in includes both that of probate practice and the duties of a
corporation attorney, holding the latter position for several of the
important corporations of the city.
From NDGW
Darwin De GOLIA was born in Lake George Co. NY Mar 9, 1818 and came to CA
before 1855. He married Lavinia WHEELER BALDWIN on September 26, 1855 in Pla
cerville CA.
Children were:
1.George Ellis de GOLIA born about 1857; died at age 61 Alameda Jan 18 1919
Married Caroline B. RABBI (RABE); she died Alameda at age 57 8-19-1917
Children:
a.George E. Jr.
b.Noel (Mrs. Challen PARKER), New York
2.Abbie Laninia de GOLIA born Apr 15, 1859; died 1941
Married George Benjamin FLINT 1887 in Placerville CA
Children:
a.Arthur D. FLINT
b.Chester B. FLINT
c.Edna FLINT CONE
3.Darwin Curtis de GOLIA born Placerville about 1865; died age 70 Alameda
2-13-1935
Married Anna FOGERTY
Child: Jack de GOLIA
4.Edwin Baldwin de GOLIA born Placerville
Married Netty GATES
Children:
1.Harold Gates de GOLIA
2.Edwin B. de GOLIA Jr died age 37 San Francisco CA 1-10-1937
Married M. P.
3.Yvonne de GOLIA (Mrs. George Clayes STEVENS)
Material submitted by Mrs. Edna FLINT CONE, granddaughter living at 1435
Bonita Avenue, Berkeley, CA
(In 1870 census El Dorado pg 107 Plcvl
History of Santa Cruz County pg 354
H. E. MAKINNEY.
The subject of this sketch was born near the town of Eaton, in Preble
County, Ohio, on the thirty-first day of July,1840. His father was a
farmer, and a greater part of the son's early life was devoted to the same
vocation. He attended the public schools in his neighborhood, and at the
age of fourteen, when his father's family removed to Keo-kuk, Iowa, Mr.
Makinney entered Ballinger's Academy of that place. At the age of seventeen
he had qualified himself for the profession of teaching and began work in a
country school near his father's farm.
On the 15th of April, 1862, Mr. Makinney was married to Miss Astoria G.
Anderson, at the village of New Boston, near Keokuk. The happy couple
immediately started on their wedding trip, which was to be quite unique as
well as lengthy, toilsome, and dangerous. Their conveyance was a wagon and
ox team, and their route lay across the plains, two thousand weary miles, to
the State of California.
The year 1862 was fraught with dangers and hardships for emigrants, and many
travelers were murdered by Indians or perished through sickness and
privation while on their way to California. But fortune was more kind to
the bride and groom on their wedding tour. In September, 1862, they arrived
at their destination, Placerville, California.
Mr. Makinney immediately began to look for employment. His first work was
hauling wood. The trip across the plains had used up the wagon, so he
borrowed one from the man for whom he was working, and set out to earn his
first California gold.
He worked at this until he earned $11 and thought he was getting along
pretty well, when his team took a "gee" pull and broke the pole off the
wagon. The owner thought that $11 would about pay for repairing the
damages, so the account was squared and Mr. Makinney stopped hauling wood.
His next undertaking was digging a cellar. He followed this laborious work
until his hands were blistered and his back sore.
The county examinations for teachers was held about this time, so Mr.
Makinney laid down his pick and shovel and took up the pen to win the
credentials that would entitle him to employment more in keeping with his
taste, qualifications, etc. He began in a country school near Placerville,
and was soon after engaged in a town school, and in 1865 was elected
principal of the Placerville High School. He was soon afterwards attacked
by a severe fever and ague, which compelled him to resign his position. He
was advised to try a change of climate, and, through the influence of an
Episcopal clergyman, secured a position as principal of the Santa Cruz
School. He came to Santa Cruz the last of December, 1866, and filled the
puncipalship of the school with great satisfaction until December, 1873. In
1867 he was elected county school superintendent, and held the office until
his election as county clerk, in 1873. From 1873 to 1885 he held the
position of county, clerk, auditor, and recorder, when he retired from
politics and engaged in his present business, abstract and conveyance, also
dealing in real estate.
Mr. Makinney also served on the county board of education from 1880 to 1887,
served three terms as deputy district attorney, and three terms as city
clerk, and one term as city clerk, and one term as city school trustee. In
1884 he was admitted to the practice of law.
Three children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Makinney. The eldest, Kate V.,
is now the wife of Dr. K. D. Wise, of Los Angeles. His son, Fred, is his
father's partner, and the younger daughter, Pearl, is also in her father's
office.
History of Santa Cruz County pg 354 & 305
FRED W. MAKINNEY.
The young gentleman whose name appears above is the son of W. E. Makinney,
and was born in Placerville, El Dorado County, on the fourteenth day of
October, 1865. When he was about one year of age his father removed to Santa
Cruz. Fred received his education in the Santa Cruz public schools and the
State University of California.
After leaving school Fred joined his father in the searching and abstracting
business in 1886, at which he still continues. His abilities and
achievements certainly entitle him to the appellation of a successful young
man. His portrait will be found in the group of young business men of Santa
Cruz.
History of Butte County p844
EUGENE FORTUNE COUTOLENC.--In the town of Jauziers in the beautiful valley
of the Ubaye in the department of Basses-Alps, surrounded by the magnificent
scenery so common in the mountain region of the south of France, lived the
honorable French family of Jean Antoine and Antoinette (Bellon) Coutolenc.
To this worthy couple a son, Eugene Fortune was born. His grandfather,
Antoine Coutolenc was a merchant and trader. He had made contracts to the
amount of eighty thousand francs with Napoleon's troops when they were on
their way to Italy, but lost it all when the French government failed to pay
the obligation. Eugene's father was a butcher. He was married twice; of the
first union there were two children one of whom Jean Coutolenc, came to
California in 1851, became a butcher and died at St. Helena when he was
eighty-two years of age. The second marriage resulted in the birth of eight
children: two of them are in California and are the only survivors of the
family; Auguste, of San Francisco, and Eugene F., of this review. The
father died on March 19, 1871, after having lived a long and useful life.
The third in the family of eight children, Eugene F. Coutoleac, was born in
1854 and was reared in Jauziers, where he attended the public school. From
when he was a small lad he worked around his father's butcher shop, and in
time he became an adept at the trade. When he was nineteen, in 1873, he
arrived in San Francisco, where his two older brothers were located, one in
that city and the other across the bay, in Oakland. For one year he was
employed in the packing-house of Barraty and Coutolenc. He then crossed the
bay and went to work for the brother who had a market in Oakland. While he
was working for his brother he spent his odd moments in the study of
English, and his evenings in attending night school, thus soon learning to
speak the language of his adopted county. Desiring to go into business for
himself, he opened a wholesale and retail coffee house at 307 Clay San
Francisco, continuing for six months. He then went over the bay to Sausalito
and entered the employ of a Mr. Josse, who conducted a meat market there,
but soon after he bought the business with Jean Barraty for a partner, the
firm doing business under the name of Barraty and Coutolenc.
This establishment is still doing business and is being conducted by Edward,
a son of the former proprietor and an ex-mayor of Sausalito. Mr.Coutolenc
sold his interest after two years and returned to Oakland to work for his
brother, Jean, in a shop known as the Willow Market, located at Third
Jefferson Streets, continuing for two years.
Mr. Coutolenc was married in Sausalito on January, 19, 1879, to Miss
Gabrielle Picard, who was born in Chinon, Department Indre-et-Loire, France,
and came to San Francisco with her parents when she was a young woman. Some
time after their marriage the young couple went to Butte County to visit
Mrs. Coutolenc's parents, and upon their return to Oakland, Mr. Coutolenc
bought out his brother and conducted the Willow Market alone for two years,
then on account of ill health he sold out and went to St. Helena, where in
partnership with his brother Jean he ran a shop for a like period.
Meanwhile his wife died and he became so ill that a physician advised him to
take a sea voyage to the Sandwich Islands for a change. This he did, in
1884, and remained there five months. While in the islands he became
acquainted with a young lady, and their acquaintance resulted in their
marriage on February 7, 1885. This lady was Miss Amelie Rochet, born near
Lausanne, Canton Vaud, Lake Geneva, Switzerland, a daughter of Jean David
and (Lambelet) Rochet. They were farmers who spent their entire lives in
their native canton, where their five children were born, three of whom now
living: One brother, Louis, is in Switzerland; a sister, Adele, Mrs. P.
Remond, lives in Berkeley; and Mrs. Coutolenc, the youngest. She re-ceived a
good education and was traveling companion to an English woman, and had
spent considerable time in London, going to the Sandwich Islands in 1881
with this family. There she met Mr. Coutolenc.
After their marriage, Mr. Coutolenc's health having become normal once more,
he brought his bride back to California and they located in Butte County. He
leased a store and ranch from Victor Poumarat, at the place now known as
Coutolenc, and engaged in the general mercantile business and in raising
hogs and packing pork for the markets. At the end of five years he prospered
so well that he bought the various properties from Mr. Pou-marat and at once
erected a new hotel, built a concrete reservoir, piped the water from a
large spring to it, and from there to the hotel and cottages, which he had
erected for his summer boarders and tenants. He ran the hotel, store, and
the pork-packing business, and was very successful.
Mr. Poumarat had the post office then named Lovelock at his place and served
as postmaster for several years, but after that did not want to bother with
it, so got a Mr. Benner to take it, and it was moved to his place about a
mile and a half north, still retaining the name of Lovelock.
Coutolenc first located on the place he was advised to try, to regain the
post office. He waited two years, then secured enough signers to a petition
and the office was moved to his place again, and he was appointed
postmaster. This move created a disturbance in the neighborhood of Mr.
Benner's place and as a result the office was moved back there. Our subject
could see the necessity of having an office in his neighborhood for the
convenience of the citizens and suggested that it be named Old Lovelock, but
at this the postal authorities demurred and the petition was denied. He
persisted in his efforts and at last an office was established at his place
and named Coutolenc, in his honor, and he was appointed postmaster by
Mr.Wanamaker and held the position for nineteen years, his good wife being
his able assistant. In 1909, he sold out his store and other holdings to
Clarence Musselman, and moved to Chico Vecino, where he bought a house at
Fourth and Streets; he later bought a store on Esplanade and started a meat
market which he ran for several years, when he sold the business.
Mr. and Mrs. Coutolenc have had five children; Adele, who died at the age of
seven years; Leila, Mrs. P. L. Roberts, of Chico; Ida, a graduate of Chico
High School and the State Normal, is teaching in Oakland;Valentine, a
graduate of the Chico High School, and now a student at the Chico State
Normal; and Eugene David, at home.
Mr. Coutolenc has always favored good schools and for years was a trustee of
the Coutolenc district named in his honor. and he served as clerk of the
board for some time. In politics he is a Democrat. Mr. Coutolenc is
interested in mining, owning a two-third's interest in a mining property
with Mr. Poumarat as a partner. This is a free milling gold-ore quartz
claim and promises to develop into a good investment. Mr. and Mrs. Coutolenc
are highly respected Citizens of the county.
History of Northern CA.
J. W. AND W. B. RODDAN.--Among the enterprising and prosperous young farmers
of Yuba County none are better known than these two gentleman. A history of
the county would be incomplete without some mention of their ranch and its
productions. They are the owners of 510 acres of rich bottom land, located
two miles from Wheatland. The products of their farm are grain and hops, but
it is to the latter that they are giving their principal attention. They
annually produce immense quantities of hops, and their entire crop is
contracted for before it is picked, or, indeed, before it is grown.
Messrs. Roddan are the sons of Hugh and Emeline (Browning) Roddan. The
father was born in Scotland and is now a resident of San Francisco, and the
mother, a native of Pennsylvania, died in Yuba County, California, in 1853.
They came with their parents to California, in 1862, and landed in Nevada
County. Two months later they came to Yuba County and settled where they now
reside. Both are members of the I.0.0.F., Sutter Lodge, No.100.
J. W. was married at Wheatland, in 1883, to Miss Eva Plomteaux, a native of
California. They have two children: Cecil W. and Guy H.
W. B. wedded Miss Flora Hezlip, in Wheatland, in 1876. She is a native of
Minnesota. They are the parents of five children, viz.: Aldine P., Vivian
E., Mattie 0., Flora 0. and Doland B.
Headline: The Wheatland Crime.
William B. RODDAN and his wife arrested by the Detectives.
Wheatland, September 15th.-- The community was thrown into a state of
excitement this morning by the announcement of the arrest of William B.
RODDAN and his wife, Flora, at whose residence the recent outrage on Ida
DUNN and Cora HENSLEY was committed. The streets are filled with people,
discussing the affair, and the terrible deed is brought up again to the
minds of the community. Opinion differs as to the guilt or innocence of the
arrested parties. The preliminary examination will be held tomorrow morning.
Detectives Harrison, Gay and Waddell made the arrest.
I also found that Eva Lenore (PLOMTEAUX) RODDAN died in Roseville June 3
1947 at age 82. Her obit was in the Sacramento Bee on June 3 1947 (18-7).
RODDAN -- In Roseville, June 3, 1947, Eva Lenore RODDAN, wife of the late
John W. RODDAN, loving mother of Cecil W. RODDAN of San Francisco, Guy H.
RODDAN of Los Angeles, and Mrs. Erma Lenore ANDERSON of Roseville; a native
of Lincoln, CA, aged 82 years. Friends are respectfully invited to attend
the funeral from the home of Miller & Skeleton, 1015 Twentieth Street,
Thursday at 3 p.m. Interment East Lawn.
One other item from the CADI: John Wesley RODDAN was the brother of William
Browning RODDAN. He was a farmer in Wheatland on July 23 1896. Age was 40
and he was 6 feet tall, light complexion, had blue eyes, black hair and was
from Iowa. William Browning RODDAN was 42, stood 5 10 1/2 and had light hair
and blue eyes.
History of San Joaquin County p1414
MRS. MARTHA ALICE FREDERICK.
--For more than a half century Mrs. Martha Alice Frederick has been a
resident of San Joaquin County and is honored throughout the county for her
true worth. She was born at Rising Sun, Polk County, Iowa, on August 19,
1862. the youngest of a family of nine children born to Robert R. and Mary
Jane (KING) Wilcox, both natives, of New York, born February 25, 1819, and
January 10 l823 respectively. Her parents located in Pennsylvania on a
homestead in 1828 where Robert R. Wilcox became identified prominently in
the lumber and oi1 business and there amassed a large fortune. He was
married at Oil Creek, Pa., to Miss Mary Jane King and nine children were
born to them: Eleanor became the wife of James R. Curtiss and settled in
western Kansas: she passed away at Summerfield, Kans. on April 17, 1922,
aged eighty-one, and was survived by five children. James R., a veteran of
the Civil War in which he was twice wounded, is a retired farmer and
stockman residing with his family of three children at Beattie, Kans.
Clarissa Angeline is the widow of Benjamin G. Frederick, who was born July
3, 1844, near Southern Whitney, Ind., and was reared on a farm. Early in
1870 he and his wife arrived in California and settled in Ripon, where he
erected the first building and conducted a boarding house; later Mr.
Frederick became a prominent orchardist. He was a veteran of the Civil War,
having served in Company I, 18th Volunteer Infantry from Iowa. He was
familiarly known as Uncle Benjamin in the vicinity of Ripon and was a
prominent member of the Brethren Church; he passed away June 29, 1906. Mrs.
Benjamin Frederick divides her time between Stockton and her old home at
Ripon. John Gilbert is residing with his wife and six children in Council
Bluffs. Iowa, where he is engaged in the hardware and implement business; W.
R., an inventor and mining expert in Manhattan, Nev., died November 15.
1922: Sarah Jane is deceased; Henry F. is a building contractor in Salida,
Colo.; Emory is deceased; Martha Alice is the subject of this sketch.
Robert R. Wilcox, the father of our subject, settled in Ripon in 1882 and
farmed for a few years near Taylor's Ferry; he passed away at Ripon,
November 23, 1904, aged eighty-five years; his wife had passed away May
23,1863.
Martha Alice Wilcox accompanied her sister, Mrs. Clarissa Frederick, to
California in 1870 and grew to young womanhood in Ripon. On August 14, 1881,
she was married to Harrison Frederick, born in Indiana, September 20, 1845,
a son of Duncan and Lucinda (Beatley) Frederick, natives of Ohio, the father
a pioneer farmer of his native state of Ohio.
Harri-son Frederick accompanied his two brothers, John and Thomas, whose
sketches also appear in this history, to California across the plains in
1862, bringing with them considerable stock; they settled on the Stanislaus
River near the present site of Ripon where they engaged in farming and stock
raising, and all three of the brothers became well known and influential
citizens.
Mr. Frederick built a fine large residence on his ranch where the young
married couple began their wedded life. Three children were born to them:
Gilbert is married and has two children---Benjamin and Harrison; he is a
rancher and merchant; Clara Lillian resides at home with her mother; Nellie
B., is the wife of Clyde Wilcox and they have three children: Robert Wilcox
and Martha; they reside at Melones, Cal. Mr. Frederick was a liberal
contributor to all worthy movements; he gave the land to the county for the
San Joaquin school and served as a trustee of that district for many years;
fraternally he was a charter member of the Mt. Horeb Lodge, I.0.0.F. When
he passed away November 11, 1913, the county lost one of its most worthy
pioneers.
After her husband's death, Mrs. Frederick and her daughter, Clara Lillian,
continued the management of the home place, which became one of the show
places of the Ripon section. In 1919 the home place was sold for a large
sum and in 1921 the family residence at 601 Tuxedo Park, Stockton, was
built. Mrs. Frederick is past matron of the Rebekah Lodge at Ripon and she
and her daughter are members of the Iowa Club of Northern California.
History of San Joaquin County page 559
MRS. SUSAN J. FREDERICK. -A prominent and highly esteemed California
pioneer, Mrs. Susan J. Frederick has been a resident of San Joaquin County
for nearly her entire lifetime, having witnessed as much of its development
and growth as probably any other living resident, and the large success
gained by herself and husband, the late Thomas Frederick, was entirely
earned by steady industry and business management. She was born near
Memphis, Scotland County, Mo., September 24, 1855; a daughter of William H.
and Barbara E. (Dye) Crow, both now deceased. William H. Crow, familiarly
known throughout his locality as "Uncle Billy," was born in 1819 in
Kentucky, but was reared in Pike County, Mo; whither his parents had removed
in the early '30s. He was next to the oldest in a family of eight boys and
one girl. On February 2, 1843, William H. Crow was married to Miss Barbara
E. Dye, born in 1828 in Morgan County, Ohio, a daughter of John and Nancy
(Archer) Dye, farmer folk who settled in Missouri when their daughter,
Barbara E., was a small girl. After his marriage, William H. Crow continued
to reside in Scotland County, Mo., where he became a successful stockman,
remaining there until 1850.
News of the gold discovery in California having reached Missouri William H.
Crow's father, 'Capt.' Walter Crow, lost no time in organizing a com-pany,
among which were his two youngest sons, and of which he was made captain.
They brought a large number of cattle with them. The two sons remained in
California, but Walter Crow returned to his home in Missouri via the
Isthmus; the next year, 1850, he came out again, and brought four more of
his sons with him, one of whom was William H. Crow, the father of the
subject of this review. The journey was completed successfully; the party
stopping at Shaw's Flat, Tuolumne County, where they disposed of their stock
at fancy prices to the miners. Capt. Walter Crow died in Sutter County in
1850, but William H. Crow opened a butcher business at Shaw's Flat, which he
conducted until 1855. He made three trips in all across the plains. His
second trip was in 1852 when he brought his wife and one child with him. Of
their four children the oldest was Walter J. Crow, who was born in Missouri
and was the only child who accompanied the parents on their trip out from
Missouri in 1852; the second, Emma J., is the widow of the late Judge
Prewett and resides at Auburn. Placer County, Cal.; the third was Susan J.,
the subject of this review, who was born while the parents were back in
Missouri; and the fourth, Lewis B., was born after the parents returned to
California, and is a prosperous rancher near Sanger, Fresno County, Cal. The
oldest son became a rancher near Hanford, where he died. Returning again
with his familiar to California in 1857, and crossing the plains for the
third time, William H. Crow finally settled permanently on the Stanislaus
River, near Ripon, twenty miles south of Stockton, where he took up land, to
which he added from time to time, until he became an extensive land owner.
Transportation was made in those days overland and by riverboats. One boat,
the Clara Crow, plied the San Joaquin and Stanislaus rivers to San Francisco
and Stockton for many years. The boat (for a single trip) reached what is
now known as Riverbank, but at that time was known as Burneyville.
Of William H. Crow's brothers and sisters, there were eight brothers and one
sister in all. The two brothers and one sister remaining back in Missouri
moved out to California in 1865 with their families. Six of the Crow
brothers settled in Stanislaus County and one, James A. Crow, settled in
Stockton, where he passed away. In 1865 the mother of our subject passed
away at the River Ranch and subsequently William H. Crow married Mrs.
(Virda) Trolinger, a sister of John Jones of Escalon. William H. Crow was a
Democrat in politics and for many years was an active Mason in the Modesto
lodge. He passed away at the River ranch. July 29, 1884, his widow
surviving him until 1906. The extensive land holdings of William H. Crow
(900 acres in all) have been sold in small ranches and the section is now
under a high state of cultivation. Lewis B. Crow and our subject, and Emma
J. the widow of Judge Prewett of Auburn, Cal., are the only surviving
members of the William H. Crow family. Judge Prewett was the administrator
of the large Crow estate. For thirty-two years he had served as superior
judge of Placer County and when he passed away on July 7, 1922, he was
justly mourned by a large circle of friends and the public in general, whom
he had served so long and so faithfully. He was survived by his widow and
two children, William J. and Nellie E.
On September 1, 1872, Miss Susan J. Crow was married to Thomas Frederick,
born January 27, 1849, near South Bend. Ind., and was a babe in arms when
his parents removed to Iowa. He was a boy thirteen years old when he came
to California as a member of his stepfather's family. After his father's
death his mother was married to Elias Nutt, who became a prominent grain
farmer in the Ripon section of San Joaquin County. Thomas Frederick
received his education in the old San Joaquin school and in young manhood
acquired 160 acres in the Jackson district of Stanislaus County: later he
exchanged this with William H. Crow, the father of our subject, for a fine
quarter section two miles west of Ripon. At that time only one house had
been erected between this quarter section and the town of Ripon and in those
pioneer days the mail was brought from the station known as Morrano, two
miles north of Ripon. A store was erected at Ripon in 1875 and conducted by
a Mr. Crook, who gave the village its name after his hometown in Wisconsin.
The first house erected by Mr. Frederick on his ranch was a small cottage,
then in 1875 was replaced by a much finer residence and in 1886 remodeled
into a fine house, where the family resided until 1904. Four children were
born to Mr. and Mrs. Frederick: Genoa resides in Ripon; Charles is
represented in this work; Hattie resides at home in Ripon; and Lulu, now
Mrs. H. L. Dickey, has two children. Mr. Frederick was active in the
development of Ripon; he organized the Ripon Lumber Company; was one of the
organizers and a di-rector in the Bank of Ripon and was active in the
development or irrigation in this section. In politics he was a Democrat
and fraternally was a charter member of the Mt. Horeb lodge of Odd Fellows.
In 1904 the family removed to Stockton and located at 324 West Park Street,
where he passed away sud-denly July 4, 1920. Mrs. Frederick later returned
to Ripon, where she built a home on Orange Avenue. She retains her interest
in the Bank of Ripon and is all active member of the First Congregational
Church, to which she contributes liberally of her time and means. Mrs.
Frederick is held in high esteem, and the kindly social qualities with which
she is endowed wins for her the friendship and good will of all.
History of San Joaquin County page 947
JOHN W. FREDERICK.-A native son and life-long resident of San Joaquin
County, who is also a prosperous and enterprising agriculturist is John W.
Frederick, residing on his 160-acre ranch three miles west of Ripon, which
he farms to wheat and barley. He was born on the place where he now resides,
November 4, 1871, a son of John and Nancy (Underwood) Frederick. John
Frederick was born in Indiana and later was taken to Iowa by his parents,
where the family lived until 1860 when they crossed the plains with an
emigrant train to California. The Frederick family located rear Stockton, on
the Peter Clapp ranch, where they remained for one year; later they removed
to the salt grass land and range country three miles west of Ripon. At that
time the land was thought to be worthless for farming. John Frederick had
married in Iowa Miss Nancy Underwood, a daughter of Philip Underwood, born
in Iowa, and the Underwoods accompanied the Fredericks to California in
1860. Seven children were born to this pioneer couple: Mary Ellen resides
at home; Flora, Mrs. Frank Stephenson, has two daughters and one son, and
are ranchers on the homestead near Ripon; Mrs. Birdina Curtis resides in
Ripon; Ida, Mrs. H. A. Buchanan, resides at Folsom, and has four sons;
Eliza, Mrs. John Garrison, resides in Ripon and has four daughters and four
sons; John W., the subject of this sketch, and James W., resides with his
wife in Modesto, where he is engaged in the real estate business and
ranching.
John Frederick homesteaded 160 acres and purchased 160 acres, making 320
acres, which he farmed to grain; he also raised considerable stock on his
ranch. He bought ten acres of timberland near Taylor's Ferry on the
Stanislaus River, which is now owned by our subject, John Frederick, served
as a school trustee of San Joaquin school district until he passed away in
1885. The mother and sons managed the ranch until 1896, when our subject
took full charge of it and leased other lands on which he raised large
quantities of wheat and barley, besides having considerable stock. In 1900
the original house built by his father more than a half century ago, was
replaced by a more commodious residence, which stood for seventeen years and
then was destroyed by fire; three years later Mr. Frederick built his modern
residence where he and his family now reside. The mother passed away In
Ripon in 1916, and John W. became administrator of the estate.
In 1920 John W. Frederick was married to Miss Kathryn Nutt, a daughter and
third child of thirteen children born to Henry D. and Sarah M (Hull) Nutt,
natives of Indiana and Iowa, respectively. Mr. Frederick purchased the
interests of all his brothers and sisters and owns the original 160 acres,
as well as the ten acres of timber land on the Stanislaus River, which his
father purchased so many years ago for the permanent home of the Frederick
family.
The irrigation activities of San Joaquin County has always found an ardent
supporter in Mr. Frederick and his influence for the advancement of his
particular locality has been given enthusiastically.
History of San Joaquin County CA page 391
ALFRED L. COWELL.-Prominent among the representatives of the bar in
California is Alfred L. Cowell, the attorney-at-law and irrigation expert of
Stockton, who was born at Woodland. Yolo County, Cal., on March 17, 1870,
the son of Alfred H. and Emeline (Hubbard) Cowell, both natives of Ohio. Mr.
Cowell crossed the great plains in 1858, riding a mule, while Mrs. Cowell
came out to California, when only ten years old by way of the Isthmus, so
that they were married in the Golden State. In 1885, Mr. Cowell removed
from Woodland and located at Woodbridge in San Joaquin County, where he
kept a general store.
Alfred Cowell attended the San Joaquin Valley College at Woodbridge, from
which he was graduated in 1892, when he went East and became a student at
Union Biblical Seminary, Dayton, Ohio, after which he returned to Woodbridge
and became president of the San Joaquin Valley College, which responsible
office he held from 1895 through 1897.
For the next year he was principal of the Lodi high school, and from 1898 to
1899 he was principal of the Siskiyou County high school at Yreka. In July,
1899, he became reporter for the Mail newspaper at Stockton, and later,
until 1911, he was editor of that influential journal, and then, going to
Modesto, he bought an interest in the Modesto News. While there, he became
particularly interested in irrigation, and he was appointed secretary of the
California Irrigation Districts Association, and since then he has been
active in behalf of irrigation projects in the San Joaquin Valley. During
the session of the California Legislature in 1913, he represented the
association at Sacramento in securing important amendments to the irrigation
district laws of the state.
From 1914 to 1916, Mr Cowell was assistant director of congresses at the
Panama-Pacific Exposition held in San Francisco in 1915 working under
Director J. A. Barr, of Stockton; and he also taught in the Stockton high
school for a year. Then he studied law and in 1918 was admitted to the bar.
Since then, making irrigation matters a specialty, he has taken part in the
organization of some of the largest irrigation districts in the San Joaquin
Valley and devotes nearly all his time to district affairs.
When Mr. Cowell married at Woodbridge, in 1896, he chose for his
life-companion, Miss Alice Gingrich, a native of Pennsylvania. He is a
member of Charity Lodge No.6, I. 0. 0. F., at Stockton.
The History of San Joaquin County, CA p504
JOSHUA COWELL.-It is generally known that Joshua Cowell originally owned
nearly all the land on which the thriving town of Manteca now stands, and
the appellation "Father of Manteca" is well applied. He was also the first
mayor of Manteca after its incorporation in May, 1918. In 1910 Mr. Cowell
was harvesting grain from the land where now stands the modern city of
Manteca with her 1,200 inhabitants. He has been most active in the
upbuilding of this city having erected a number of Class A buildings in the
business district. He is now interested in general farming and is one of
the leading advocates of irrigation, having proved in his own farm
operations the value of this method in enhancing the productiveness of the
land. So widely and favorably is Mr. Cowell known that his record cannot
fail to prove of interest to our readers.
A native of Tioga County, N. Y., he was born on January 2,1842, and is a son
of Henry and Elida (McMaster) Cowell, also natives of the Empire State. The
paternal grandfather, Joshua Cowell, was a sol-dier in the War of 1812.
About 1845 the father. Henry Cowell, removed with his family from New York
to Grant County, Wis., and there he lost his wife nine years later. Joshua
Cowell was reared in Grant County, where he made his home until 1861, when
at the age of nineteen years he came to the West, making the journey across
the great plains with a train of emigrants. He drove an ox team all the
way, reaching his destination after four months of travel. He left the
train, however, at the Carson River in Nevada and remained for a time in
that state. Subsequently he continued his journey to California, where he
arrived in January, 1863, crossing the Sierra Nevada Mountains on foot and
coming direct to San Joaquin County. He then took up his abode at the place
where he now resides and it has been his home continuously since. He had two
brothers. Henry W. and Winston Cowell, who also located with him on the
ranch and for some time they conducted farming operations there.
On November 25, 1868, Joshua Cowell was united in marriage with Miss
Vienetta Rachael Graves, born in Grant County, Wis., and who came across the
plains in 1864. They became the parents of six children; Elida A. married
James Salmon and died leaving one daughter; Mary E. became the wife of
Charles L. Salmon and they have two children; Clara C. is Mrs. Clifford
Wiggins and the mother of three living children; Otis M., the only son, is
the father of one child. Two children died in early childhood. Some time
after the death of the wife and mother, Mr. Cowell was married a second
time, in September, 1884, when Miss Emily F. Sanders became his wife. She
was born in New York state in 1849 and came to California in 1876 By this
marriage there is one daughter, Hattie V., now the wife of Maxie Mewborn,
and they have three children There are five great-grandchildren in the
Cowell family circle. In 1864 Joshua Cowell's father came to California,
accompanied by F. Marion Cowell and Phoebe Cowell and he died in San Joaquin
County aged sixty-six years.
After his marriage Mr. Cowell took his bride to his farm where he has since
resided and has become one of the best known and most progressive citizens
of his locality. He has always been a strong advocate of irrigation and with
many others of the early settlers had the vision of water on those thousands
of fertile, sandy and thirsty acres, so they dug a canal from above Knights
Ferry, a distance of forty-five miles, taking water out of the Stanislaus
River and they brought it down into the hot valley. They were laughed at for
their dreams. The attitude towards the project was unfavorable, and the
dream was unrealized and many of the promoters lost fortunes in the early
throes of the irrigation movement. A trace of the old canal may still be
seen. Then came Charles Tulloch and his interests, with more water, taking
over the defunct concern's water system. and finally the formation of the
South Side Irrigation district. For a number of years Mr. Cowell was engaged
as a contractor in the building of irrigation ditches and levees mainly in
San Joaquin County. His ranch is devoted to general agricultural pursuits
and stock-raising, and both branches of his business have proved profitable.
He has also been extensively engaged in the dairy business, and for five or
more years served as president of the Cowell Station Creamery, being the
first incumbent in that position. What ever he undertakes he carries
forward to successful completion, and while his labors have brought him
prosperity they have also been of a character that has promoted the general
good. In his political allegiance Mr. CowelI is a Republican, but while he
renders unfaltering support to the party he has never sought or desired
public office for himself, preferring to give his attention to his business
interests. He was, however, a candidate for the office of supervisor in the
'80s. He belongs to the Brethren Church and never withholds his support and
cooperation from any movements that he feels will contribute to the general
good. His business career exemplifies the force of industry and energy in
the utilization of opportunity. He certainly deserves much credit for what
he has accomplished, and though he started out in life empty-handed he
attained a high degree of success.
History of San Joaquin County CA page 1583
ELBERT ALLEN COVELL.-Prominent among the well-to-do citizens of Woodbridge
is Elbert Allen Covell, a native of San Leandro, Alameda County, where he
was born on February 5. 1874. His father. Allen T. Covell came to
California in 1856 from New York state; he was a carpenter by trade, but
like thousands of others a that time, he joined the rush to the mines. He
did not follow mining long, however, but turned to civil engineering, and in
1876 removed to Fresno County where he helped to lay out and establish the
Washington Irrigated Colony. In 1888, he came to Woodbridge, where he
acquired land, which in time he set out as a vineyard.
Allen T. Covell lived to be eighty-two years old; his devoted wife, who was
Mary Elizabeth Sherwin before her marriage, reached her sixtieth year. They
had four children, three boys and a girl.
Elbert Allen Covell attended the Woodbridge common school, and afterwards
was a student at the San Joaquin Valley College. When he was old enough to
do so, he took up farm work, taking charge of a portion of the vineyard
which his father had set out; while his brother, George F., also took over a
part of the vineyard ranch. The whole property consisted of 160 acres. Today
Mr. Covell owns thirty choice acres set out to Tokay grapes, west of the
town, and this trim little farm is well irrigated. He and his brother
together, own a ranch of 270 acres in Stanislaus County, between Salida and
Modesto mostly set out to vineyard.
At Stockton, on August 3, 1904, Mr. Covell was married to Miss Florence
McMurtry, the daughter of Lewis C. McMurtry. She was born in Gold Hill. Nev.
Her father, a well-known hotel man, came to Woodbridge when she was a little
girl, and here she was reared and educated. Mr. Covell was made a Mason in
Woodbridge Lodge No. 131, F. & A. M., of which he is a past master. He is a
member of Stockton Charter No.28. R. A. M.; Stockton Commandery No. K. T.:
and Islam Temple. A.A.0.N.M S., San Francisco; and with his wife he is a
member of Woodbridge Chapter No. 118, 0. E. S., of which he is a past patron
and Mrs. Covell is a past matron. In 1922 Mr. and Mrs. Covell made a
four-mouth trip to Europe visiting England, Scotland and the Continent.
History of San Joaquin County CA page 920
ADELBERT M. COWELL.-A resident of Stockton since 1886, Adelbert M. Cowell is
so well informed on local conditions and affairs that he is among the most
sanguine in his hopefulness for the future of Central California, and
especially of Stockton and the San Joaquin Valley. He was born in Auburn,
N. Y., on June 29, 1844. He is a son of Myron and Melvina (Sanders)
Cowell, natives of New York, where the father was a grain merchant and
stock buyer.
Addbert M. is second oldest of their six children. His opportunities for
schooling were extremely meager and while still a young lad he learned the
stone and brickmason and plasterer's trade; he then removed to Washington,
D. C., where an older brother, Albert, resided, who was a brick contractor
and our subject worked with his brother on the construction of buildings
after the chose of the Civil War, during the administration of President
Grant. Then going south to Richmond. Va., he found employment with the
Richmond & Alleghany Railroad on construction work at Lynchburg, Va., and
also on similar work for the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad in West Virginia; he
also did work for the U S. Government at Memphis, Tenn. He then returned to
his native city of Auburn, N.Y., and remained there for one year, when he
went to Wichita, Kans., and engaged in contract brick work. During the year
of 1885 he arrived in California and located in San Diego, where he did
contract construction work for the San Diego Flume Company.
The following year, in 1886, he arrived in Stockton, where he has since made
his home. Among the more notable buildings on which he did the brick work,
are the H. C. Shaw Company building; the Central Methodist Church; the John
Jury building on Weber Avenue; the brickwork on all the principal buildings
on Main, Market, Center. Weber Avenue and other business streets; he also
constructed a number of ovens for bakeries throughout the city. His
construction work has not been confined to Stockton alone, but has extended
to other counties; he erected two school houses in Fresno; a schoolhouse and
business block in Porterville; a paper mill and twenty houses and one hotel
in Floriston, above Truckee in the high Sierras; has built furnaces and set
boilers in mining towns through northern California and was in charge of the
construction work of the dam and reclamation project at Six Mile bar near
Knights Ferry. Mr. Cowell erected two modern residences of his own on North
Stanislaus Street, in one of which he makes his home.
The marriage of Mr. Cowell united him with Miss Sarah Hollingsworth, a
native of England, and they are the parents of ten children, nine of whom
are living. An unusual condition exists in his family, a death not having
occurred for fifty-two years. Their children are as follows: a daughter,
Frances, died in infancy; Arthur W. is a brick contractor in Stockton;
Ernest; J. Eugene and Myron are bricklayers; George is an actor; Esther is
the wife of E. W. Butters of Stockton; Anna is at home; Mrs. Eva Peek
resides on a ranch near Stockton; Mrs. Maude Weber resides in San Francisco.
Mr. Cowell is now living retired from active business cares. He and his
family are members of the Central Methodist Church and for many years Mr.
Cowell served as trustee. He joined the Methodist Church at Auburn. N. Y.,
in 1860, and has been a member ever since; he has always taken an active
part in its benevolences and has served as classleader, while Mrs. Cowell
has been a member since ten years of age, and has been active in the work of
the church also as classleader, and in foreign and home mission work. She
was the first woman to speak to the prisoners at the San Joaquin County
jail, caring for and looking after the families of the men in jail. visiting
the homes of the destitute and buying food and clothes for the needy. Mr.
and Mrs. Cowell are lightly esteemed in the community.
History of San Joaquin County CA page 740
F. M. COWELL.-A prominent citizen of San Joaquin County who believes that
the future of Manteca is well assured is F. M. Cowell, the vice-president of
the Manteca Packing Corporation, a far-seeing patriot who was one of the
prime factors in the founding of the town. He was born in Grant County,
Wis., on January 27, 1847, and spent his boy-hood in that state, where he
received a common school education helpful when he came to strike out for
himself.
He was preceded to the Coast by two brothers, Joshua and H. W., who had
crossed the great plains in 1860 and stopped in Nevada one year, then H. W.
came to California in 1861 and located at Lathrop and French Camp. Our
subject came out to California in 1864, by way of the Isthmus of Panama,
arriving in Stockton in August of that year. After a while he came to San
Joaquin City, as it was then called, and there he entered the employ of a
rancher; and he finally acquired a ranch and there went in for the raising
of grain. In 1868, he homesteaded 160 acres, and for twenty-eight years he
was active as a grain-farmer on the West Side.
Dry year after dry year, however, caused him to look about for a new
location with the consequence that he moved to Manteca, where his brother,
already referred to, had lands needing irrigation. In 1872 he married Ada
E. Graves, a native of Wisconsin, who had crossed the plains to California
in 1864. She passed away in 1880, mourned by a wide circle of devoted
friends. Mr. Cowell's second marriage united him with Miss Sadie Talley, who
accompanied her parents to California in 1863, by way of the Isthmus of
Panama. Her mother, now eighty-two years old, resides at Manteca. Four
children have come to call Mr. and Mrs. Cowell blessed. Mrs. Edna E.
Larsen, a resident of Stockton, is the mother of two children; B. F. Cowell
has a wife and one child, and they live in Oakland; Lester M. Cowell resides
near Ripon, with his wife and child; and Mrs. Myrtle Edwards, also a
resident of Stockton, has one child.
In 1895, our subject removed to Manteca from the West Side, where he had
served as a trustee of the Rising Sun school for ten years, and he acquired
the land of H. W. Cowell, one mile to the east of Manteca, which was again
sold, in 1917, to the Spreckels Sugar Company, and since conducted as the
site of the Spreckels' farm and factory. There Mr. Cowell set aside 150
acres, and planted the first vineyard in that section. For several years he
was chosen chairman of the farmers' mass meetings on irrigation and he did a
great work in organizing the district. He was also one of the prime factors
in gaining for this locality a branch of the Stockton Creamery at Manteca,
in 1896. He helped establish the first skimming station at Manteca, putting
it on a standard commercial basis and which has since developed into the
creamery. Besides giving valuable aid to the fore-going and other
enterprises, Mr. Cowell was instrumental in organizing the Pioneer Bank of
Manteca and with three associates, in 1915, he organized the Manteca
Cannery, interest in which he sold, after four years of success. Then he
reorganized the company, and created a larger manufactory called the Manteca
Packing Company, of which he is now the vice-president. He was also the
prime factor in the organization of the Farmers Mutual Insurance
Association, which protects the rancher at cost. The policies written by
this company now total over $6,000,000.
He was city trustee of Manteca from May, 1918, to January, 1921, and during
that time much public improvement was undertaken and carried out
successfully. He has always supported good roads, better schools and more
churches, and having always been active iii public affairs, he feels justly
proud of what the city has accomplished within a few years. He is a member
of the Knights of Pythias, and is a past chancellor commander of that order.
History of San Joaquin County CA page 1624
JOHN A. CHAPDELAIN.-For almost a quarter of a century John A. Chapdelain has
been a resident of San Joaquin County, where he is a representative of the
highest ideals of citizenship and progressive enterprise. He was born at
Faribault, Minn., April 7, 1888, a son of Alexander and Antoinette (Shavie)
Chapdehain, both natives of the same state. The paternal grandparents were
natives of Canada and Belgium, respectively, and were pioneers of Minnesota
settling among the Indians in a very early daya. There were ten children in
the father’s family; Lucile, Mrs. Reese Thompson; Emma Grace. Mrs. A. R.
Siegfried of Lodi; Louis, Mrs. Bailey; John A. of this review; James,
residing at home; Olive, deceased; Joseph, deceased; and three children who
died in infancy. In 1898 the father came to California and settled on his
present home place. his first purchase being eighty acres, twenty-six of
which were in vineyard and the balance unimproved land. From time to time he
has added to his holdings, until he now owns 570 acres of hand, devoted to
vineyard, hay and grain.
John A. Chapdelain began his education in the Woodbridge grammar school,
then entered the Lodi high school, where he remained for two years, and then
for the next three years attended St. Mary’s College at Oakland. From early
boyhood he had helped on his father's ranch. For a number of years he has
been farming independently, and now owns 290 acres of land, 140 acres of
which is in orchard and vineyard. Raising fruit extensively, he markets it
independently. One hundred thirty acres of his ranch is under the
Stockton-Mokelumne ditch, a balance of the land is irrigated from three
seven inch pumps, driven by twenty-five horsepower motor. Mr. Chapdelain has
improved his place with a good residence located on the highway just across
from his father's home
On November 16, 1916, in Stockton, Mr. Chapdelain was married to Miss
Josephine Ethel Thompson a daughter of James Henry and Lavissa (Smith)
Thompson, natives of Virginia, who came to California in 1876. Mrs.
Chapdelain was born at Clay Sacramento County, Cal., and received her
education in that locality.
History of San Joaquin County CA page 1069
ARTHUR W. COWELL.-The advancement of San Joaquin County and the upbuilding
of the city of Stockton have a progressive promoter in the person of Arthur
W. Cowell, the energetic brick and concrete contractor, who has a record of
erecting one business block each month for a year. He was born near
Richmond, Va., on August 16, 1870. His father, Adelbert M. Crowell, was
born in Auburn, N.Y., in 1834, and learned the stone and brick mason's
trade; and upon his removal to Washington, D. C., he engaged in the
contracting business. Later he did construction work for several railroads
in the East. In 1886 he arrived in California and located at San Diego
where he worked for the San Diego Flume Company. The following year he
located in Stockton, and here he has been actively engaged in construction
work of various kinds. He married Miss Sarah Hollingsworth and they are the
parents of ten children, nine of whom are living. Mr. and Mrs. Cowell
reside in one of the residences he erected on North Stanislaus Street.
Arthur W. Cowell, the oldest of his parents' living children, came to
California with the family when sixteen years of age and took up the trade
of brick mason with his father; and within four years he was able to start
in business for himself.
Following is a partial list of the buildings he has erected since 1900: the
main high school building the San Joaquin Valley Bank (now the Bank of
Italy) on Hunter Street, the Elks building the Y M C.A. building, the
Stockton Sayings & Loan Bank, the Wilhoit building, the Lincoln Hotel, the
Clark Hotel, the Henry Apartments, the Home Apartments, and Hotel Philson.
He also remodeled the Commercial Hotel and built the Smith & Lang building
on South San Joaquin street, the Salvation Army Hotel, and the Oullahan &
Littlehale block of Weber Avenue. Then there are the Belding block, Hotel
Marion, the Sanguinetti block on Market Street, the Solari block, Steed
Brothers' garage, the Flannigan block, the Turner block, the Russell block
on California Street, the Stockton Ice & Fuel building, the Russell building
and the Gnekow block.
He erected the entire block of brick buildings on the south side of Main
Street between Stanislaus and American Avenue which includes the five-story
Bronx Hotel, and also the Crane block of buildings on south San Joaquin
Street, which includes the Hotel Dale; as well as the Presbyterian Church at
the corner of El Dorado & Vine, and the new five-story Levy Building at the
corner of Main and Hunter. His building operations extend throughout the
entire county, and he has erected many substantial and imposing buildings
outside of his home city among them being the Lodi National Bank and the
Farmers & Merchants Bank building at Lodi.
The marriage of Mr. Cowell united him with Miss Margaret Willis, a native of
England and they are the parents of three children: Margaret, William A.,
and Arthur W. Jr.
During the late war, William A. Cowell served as sergeant of Company L.
363rd Infantry at Camp Lewis, and later was commissioned lieutenant;
however, he was not sent overseas. Fraternally, Mr. Cowell is a member of
Lodge No. 218 B. P.O. E., and Charity Lodge No.6. I.0.0.F.
Levi SMITH in History of Northen CA page 461
LEVI SMITH, a successful farmer of Butte County, has been a resident of
California since that memorable year of her history, 1849 His parents were
natives of Virginia, but passed their last days in Illinois, in which State
they had removed at an early day; the mother died in 1846, and the father in
1852. Levi was born in Virginia in 1830, but received his education in the
common schools of Illinois In 1848 he was caught in the tide of western
emigration, making the trip across the plains to the Pacific coast; he met
with some losses en route, a few cattle and horses dying, but he kept up
his courage and pushed on to the end. It was the 22d of September 1848 that
he landed in Oregon, and the following year he came to California. He at
once engaged in mining, as did all the emigrants of that year. The place
named Smith Bar was called so in honor of our subject, and the place known
as Oregon Gulch was named for the party of which he was a member.
Mr. Smith located on his present place in Butte County in 1886, where he
owns seven acres of fine land.
He was married to Miss Zumwalt, who was born in Missouri in 1836, and
emigrated to California in 1849; this union occurred in 1852, and has
resulted in the birth of five children: Albert, George, deceased, Charles
E., N. B., and Hattie, deceased.
Charles E. Smith is an artist of unusual talent, and has produced some
pictures of decided merit.
History of the State of CA and biographical record of Coast Counties. page 1161
Frederick B. MERITHEW died age 69 in Inyo County (8-7-1927) spouse D
Norma MERITHEW died age 69 Santa Clara (Jan 23 1917) spouse S M
Sarah A. MERITHEW died age 81 Santa Clara (Aug 15 1927)
CAPT. JOSEPH C. MERITHEW. Santa Clara County is rich in her toilers of the
sea who have exchanged their stormy life before the mast for places of trust
and responsibility inland, dignifying their respective occupations with that
confidence and personal courage characteristic of the seasoned and
successful mariner. To this class belongs Capt. Joseph C. Merithew, who in
1850 came around the Horn on the Arno, a schooner of less than one hundred
tons, and for three years ran her as a packet from San Francisco to
Sacramento, profiting largely by this opportunity to transport provisions
and general necessities to the gold seekers. Later he spent a year in
cruising in the open off San Francisco, and gradually became interested in
such promising enterprises as lumbering and grain buying in Maine Prairie,
Solano County. Twenty years of his life was spent in this thriving
commercial center. In the meantime he had purchased a home of elegance and
comfort in Oakland, and resided there, but desiring to spend the remainder
of his life in the country he ex-changed the same for a farm of fifty acres
near the town of Cupertino. Here he was surrounded by every advantage known
to the progressive and intelligent rural dweller, and made many fine
improvements, there being no buildings on the place when he took
possession. Here he died April 22, 1904.
Born in Searsport, Waldo County, Me., December 6, 1822. Captain Merithew
came of seafaring stock, and from his youth was accustomed to note the
arrival and departure amid building of ships. His father, Jeremiah, also a
native of Searsport mounted each round of nautical success until he became
commander of a ship, a position maintained with success amid few accidents
until his forty-fifth year. He then turned his attention to the building of
watercraft for other captains to command, and at the same time became owner
amid manager of a large gamier merchandise store at Searsport. His
business grew apace, and wealth and influence came his way, so that at the
time of his death at the age of seventy, he might well view with
satisfaction his life of earnest and practical endeavor.
He was faithful to the memory of a beloved wife who died at the early age of
thirty, and who was formerly Jane Olney, a native daughter of his own
hometown. His family consisted of two sons and two daughters, all deceased.
His enthusiasm for the sea was naturally communicated to his sons, and his
eldest born naturally followed in his footsteps when it came to choosing a
life vocation. The son underwent the same preliminary training before the
mast, the same dangerous and disagreeable tasks whose successful assumption
means sure and steady promotion.
At the end of four years he was made a mate, and still later captain of the
"Traveler," after relinquishing which hue purchased and manned the
schooner with which he made his first western money. Captain Merithew
married Sarah A. Black, born in Sandy Point, Me., and who died in California
in 1901. Charles, the eldest son of this union, is a resident of San
Francisco. Sarah, who married Capt. Norman Dunbar lives on her father's
ranch, and Joseph and Fred are deceased. The captain voted the Republican
ticket ever since the organization of the party, but never departed from his
determination not to accept office. He was an honored member of the Pioneer
Club of Santa Clara County, and counted the friends he has made during his
fifty-four years' residence in the west by the score.
History of Fresno County Vol 2 p2142
REUBEN H. BRAMLET and EUPHEMIA E. BRAMLET.-One of the most prominent and
honored club women of Fresno County, and ex-chairman of the History and
Landmarks Department of the San Joaquin Valley District of the California
Woman's Federation of Clubs, Mrs. R. H. Bramlet, is a pioneer of Fresno
County. R. H. Bramlet is a pioneer citizen, pioneer educator in the county
and a popular ex-county officer who has done his part to help build up the
county.
Mr. Bramlet is a worthy representative of the distinguished Bramlet family
of England, early settlers at Jamestown Va., in Colonial Days. He was born
near Raleigh, Saline County, Ill., February 7, 1842. His great-grandfather
was born in England and after settling in America became a planter. He had
three sons in the Revolutionary War. One of these was Reuben Bramlet, the
grandfather of R. H. Bramlet of Fresno County, who was also in the war of
1812, and took part in the Battle of New Orleans. After the close of the
Revolution Reuben went to Charleston. S. C., and later removed to Princeton
Caldwell County, Ky., where his son. Coleman Brown Bramlet, the father of R
H Bramlet of Fresno County was born. Coleman B. Bramlet followed
agricultural pursuits and in 1818 removed with the other members of the
family to Saline County. Ill., where, in 1823, he was united in marriage
with Miss Susan Upchurch, a young woman of Scotch extraction whose
grandfather fought in the Revolutionary War, also in the War of 1812 and
served with distinction under General Jackson at the Battle of New Orleans.
Of this union ten children were born, of whom the eighth child, R. H.
Bramlet, is the oldest one living. Coleman Bramlet lived to the advanced age
of eighty-seven; the mother passed away at the age of eighty-five.
R. H. Bramlet grew up on his father's farm in the "Egypt" of Illinois where
he remained until he had reached his twenty-fifth year. On May 3, 1867 he
left Illinois and started for California via the Isthmus, handing at San
Francisco. June 3. 1867. Of studious inclinations, the occupation of a
pedagogue appealed to him and he attended the University of the Pacific at
Santa Clara with the view of becoming a teacher. He came to Fresno County in
1870 passed the teacher's examination and was licensed to teach and that
fall he taught a private school. The first public school that he taught was
at the copper mine at Buchanan and during 1870 -1871 he taught the Fresno
Flats public school. He also taught in Dalton and in Fresno City. He was one
of the first public school teachers in Fresno. Mrs. Mary J. Hoxie of Fresno
has the distinction of teaching time first private school in that city. Mr.
Bramlet continued to teach in Fresno and vicinity until he became the
candidate for County Superintendent of Schools in 1875 and was elected in
November of that year and served during 1876 and 1877. The offices of
County Superintendent of Schools and County Auditor were then merged to that
of auditor and ex-officio county superintendent to which office Mr. Bramlet
elected in 1877 and served during 1878 and 1889 then was reelected and
during the years 1880 and 1881. A law was then made to provide for two
separate offices. For five consecutive terms of two tears each -- from 1882
to 1892 -- R. H. Bramlet was elected and served as county auditor. For four
years he taught school and served as deputy assessor under three different
assessors. He served as assessor from1892 to 1902.
Mr. Bramlet owned the eighty acres where he now lives, for fifteen years
before he settled on it in 1902. The men he employed on the ranch planted
twenty-five acres of time land to vines, and now Mr. Bramlet has thirty
acres planted to Muscats and twenty-two acres planted to Thompson's
seedless; part of the remainder of the land is in alfalfa and the rest of it
is unimproved. The Consolidated Ditch supplies water for irrigating time
ranch. For many years Mr. Bramlet has been greatly interested in building
irrigation ditches, and was a chose friend of Dick McCall, one of the
pioneer irrigation's men of the section.
In 1876 Mr. Bramlet was married to Miss Euphemia Ellen Wren, a native of
Adams County. Ill., and daughter of John and Elizabeth (Martin) Wren, Mrs.
Bramlet was but seven years old, in 1863, when her parents came with their
children to California. They braved the hardships of the long journey
across the plains with horses and \wagons and settled in Amador County.
Cal., where after a short sojourn they came to Solano County, where the
father engaged in farming. Mrs. Bramlet attended the public schools and
completed her education at the Stockton High School and the State Normal
School at San Jose, Cal. She taught school for six years altogether, in
Amador, Santa Cruz, Merced and Fresno counties-principally in the latter two
places.
Mr. and Mrs. Bramlet have two children living. Eva is the wife of C. M.
Mannon, an attorney at Ukiah, and they are the parents of five children:
James Bramlet, Elizabeth, Martha, Mary Ellen, and Charlotte. Dora is the
wife of John Stuart Ross, an attorney at El Centro, and they have four
children: Isabel S., Nell B., Jean Ellen and John Gordon.
Mr. Bramlet is an unusually well informed woman, prominent in club life and
is ex-chairman of the History and Landmarks Department of the San Valley
District of the California Woman's Federation of Clubs. For many years she
was a society header in elite circles of Fresno officialdom, and their
modest but cozy home radiates the exquisite taste and wholesome hospitality
of its accomplished hostess.
Mr. Bramlet is much interested in the cooperative associations for the fruit
growers and is a stockholder and a member of the California Associated
Raisin Company. In politics he votes with the Democratic Party on national
issues.
History of San Joaquin County p346
From CADI - Reuben died at age 83 in Fresno July 1 1925
REUBEN HENDERSON BRAMLET.
Closely associated with the advancement of the agricultural prosperity of
Fresno county is Reuben Henderson Bramlet, who owns and occupies a choice
and well-improved ranch, which is pleasantly located about five miles
northeast of Selma. Well educated, talented and of undoubted business
capacity, he has attained a place of influence in the community, and has
established himself in the confidence of his friends and fellow-citizens,
who hold him in high regard and favor. A son of Coleman Bramlet, he was born
February 7, 1842, in Saline county, Ill.; he comes of patriotic stock,
Reuben Bramlet, his paternal grand-father, having been a soldier in the
Revolutionary war, and also in the war of 1812, taking part in the battle of
New Orleans. After the Revolution he removed from Virginia, his native
state, to South Carolina, thence to Princeton, Ky. In 1818, becoming a
pioneer settler of Saline county, III., he bought wild land, and was there
employed in tilling the soil until his death.
A native of Princeton, Ky., Coleman Bramlet lived there until sixteen years
old, when, in 1818, he moved with his parents to Illinois. Selecting farming
as his life occupation he took up hand in Saline County, and was there
self-employed in the pursuit of agriculture until his death, February 28,
1889, at the venerable age of eighty-seven years and thirteen days. His
wife, to whom he was married in 1823, bore the maiden name of Susan
Upchurch. She was born in Tennessee, and died in October 1889, on the home
farm in Illinois. Of the ten sons and two daughters born of their union,
Reuben H., the subject of this sketch, was the tenth child.
After coming to California from his Illinois home, in 1867, Reuben Henderson
Bramlet completed his education at the University of the Pacific, taking a
special course of three years, partly paying his expenses by working during
the vacations in Santa Clara. Removing to what is now Madera County in 1870,
he taught school in Fresno fiats for four years, being among the first
teachers in Fresno County. The following two years Mr. Bramlet was county
superintendent of the Fresno county schools, and served the following five
years as county auditor and county superintendent. In 1883 he was again
elected county auditor, and served ten years. Buying one hundred and forty
acres of land in Fresno County, near Sanger, in 1893, he was there engaged
in general ranching for a number of years. Selling out in December 1902,
Mr. Bramlet bought his present farm, lying five miles northeast of Selma,
and is managing the eighty- acres included in the purchase with success,
raising fruit, vines and alfalfa.
At Kingriver, Fresno County, Mr. Bramlet married Euphemia Ellen Wren, who
was born in Adams County, Ill., and came across the plains to California
with her parents in 1863. Her father, John Wren, a native of Adams county,
Ill., came first to California in 1849, and was for awhile engaged in mining
but was not very successful. Returning to Illinois, he remained there until
1863, when he brought his family to the coast, locating in Fresno, Cal.,
where he carried on a substantial business until his death. Of the union of
Mr. and Mrs. Bramlet four children were born. Namely:
John C., who died at the age of two years; Eva, wife of C. M. Mannon, of
Ukiah, Cal.; Dora; and Ellen, who died at the age of seven years.
Politically Mr. Bramlet endorses the principles of the Democratic Party, and
religiously he is a member of the Baptist Church.
History of Santa Barbara P446
MILTON WASON, Formerly Judge of the County Court of Ventura, and a well-known and
widely-honored citizen, was born in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, in
January, 1817. His ancestry were of Revolutionary stock, one grandfather
having been Captain in Washington's army at White Plains; the other was also
engaged in that war, fighting at Bunker Hill. Judge Wason achieved a college
edncation, belonging to the class of 1842. at Dartmouth. Teaching school
for two years, he then proceeded to Boston, and entered the law office of
Phillips & Robbins, and completing the ordinary legal course, was admitted
to the Bar in 1846. Mr. Wason came to California in 1849, and sinking the
lawyer in the gold-digger, labored for over three years in the mines. From
1853 to 1868 he was a farmer in Solano County, representing the county in
the State Senate in 1863 and 1864. He mpved to San Buenaventura in 1868.
In the latter location he has held the office of County Judge for five
years, and was State Senator from Ventura for 1880-81. At present he is
Deputy Collector of Internal Revenue. In consequence of his agricultural
operations and public positions, Mr. Wason has never practiced law to any
extent. He was married in 1852 to Miss Maria Angelica Borgniss, and the
couple have four children.
Mr. Wason has few of the traits popularly ascribed to lawyers, being
unassuming and plain in appearance, and blunt in speech, more given to the
equities of law than its technicalities. He is deservedly popular among the
rural population, probably for the same reason that was urged as the source
of Millard Fillmore's popularity with the people, i.e., " he never deceived
them." He has a miscellaneous library of several hundred volumes, modern
works on the sciences predominating.
History of Yolo County page 605
WILLIAM JAMES REYNOLDS
Among the leading citizens of Winters, no one enjoys wider esteem than does
Mr. Reynolds, who, for the past eleven years has resided in that community,
to the general progress of which he has contributed most generously. He was
horn November 17, 1839 near Platteville, Grant county, Wis., the son of
Eldridge and Adaline (Perkins) Reynolds, natives of Kentucky. At the age of
seven years he moved with his parents to Dubuque County, Iowa, crossing the
Mississippi on a ferry boat propelled by tread horse power. During the
succeeding seven years the father conducted a farm. his son assisting him
out of school hours. In 1853 the family started for California with a wagon
and four yoke of oxen, crossing the Missouri at Council Bluffs. All went
well with them until they reached the Humboldt, where they lost most of
their cattle by alkali water. Only one yoke was spared to them and they
were compelled to leave their wagons on the summit of the Sierra Nevada
Mountains. . Mr. Reynolds was able to proceed by doubling yokes with his
brother-in-law, and they arrived at their destination after a journey of six
months. Upon reaching Hangtown they established a modest home, remaining
reaching there for two and a half years, during which time Mr. Reynolds
mined with considerable success. However, his gains of about $20,000 were
rapidly expended in mining enterprises. The last shaft sunk showed better
results than former ones, the dirt removed from the structure containing
large quantities of gold, $10 being secured in a few hours' work. Just
before the arrival of the family in Hangtown the large oak tree some four
feet in girth, known as "hang oak" was felled, and it was for this tree that
the town was named. In 1856 the father and son removed to the San Joaquin
valley, where they farmed three hundred and twenty acres near French Camp,
raising both wheat and barley.
At French Camp, in 1860, Mr. Reynolds was united in marriage with Miss Julia
Burt, of Illinois, their union being blessed with two children. George
Henry, of Stockton, and Maria A., the later deceased. Mr. Reynolds' second
marriage united him with Miss Mary L. Brent, a native of Dubuque County,
Iowa. She died near Winters in 1907, since which time Mr. Reynolds has
resided in Winters with his adopted daughter, Priscilla Hall, now Mrs.
Clarence Wyatt. Mr. Reynolds superintends his ranch, which he reaches by
means of a run-about which he owns.
Upon settling in Yolo County in 1891, W. J. Reynolds bought a one-third
interest in a valuable tract containing ninety-three and one-third acres;
one mile from Winters, and later by purchase became sole owner. This
property, which he leases on halves, comprises seven hundred and forty-eight
apricot trees and seven thousand peach trees, his share from the 1912 crop
having amounted to nearly $8000. The trees average twenty years in age and
are in excellent condition.
For two terms Mr. Reynolds served efficiently as school trustee in Merced
County, and as a Republican of broad and generous principles has always been
deeply interested in political developments. For three years during the war
he assisted in maintaining the state home guard ready for instant call, he
at this time being a resident of San Joaquin County. Since coming to Yolo
County he has devoted his time to horticulture, which he has found very
congenial, interesting and profitable. As a citizen of the highest worth he
has ever enjoyed the commendation of his fellows.
From the History of the State of CA and record of Santa Cruz, San Benito,
Monterey and San Luis Obispo Page 289
HON. JOSIAH MERRITT.
The first judge of Monterey County was born in Orange County, N. Y., near
the city of Newburgh, August 21, 1796, and was a descendant of very early
settlers of America. After receiving a college education he took up the
study of law, was admitted to the bar, and engaged in practice in New York
City. Success had already commenced to reward his efforts when, inspired
with a faith in the future of the great unknown western regions, in 1845 he
removed to Illinois. At the time the California gold excitement turned the
tide of emigration still further westward he, with many others, started for
the Pacific coast via Texas. In January 1850, he arrived at Monterey, and
the next year took an active part in organizing Monterey county, of which he
was at that time elected county judge, serving until 1854. He was a member
of the Texas Lodge of Masons; the oldest in California, and during the Civil
war was a Union Democrat.
Shortly after he had settled in Monterey, Judge Merritt married Juana
Castro; eldest daughter of Simeon Castro, judge of the first instance under
Mexican rule and one of the most influential Spanish citizens of Monterey.
She was a sister of the general who led the Mexican troops in the battle
with the Americans under General Fremont a few miles north-cast of Salinas.
After retiring from the judgeship of the county, Judge Merritt resumed the
practice of the law, in which, and numerous local enterprises; he continued
to be engaged until his death in 1869. The children who survived him were
Joseph, Lavinia, Herlinda, Jennie and Manuel R. He was a man possessing
many admirable traits, and his influence did much toward the early building
tip of Monterey.
History of Pomona Valley CA page 408
CASSIUS C. JOHNSON.
Few more consistent, practical or well-balanced careers have contributed to
the development of Pomona and Claremont than that of the late C. C. Johnson,
whose death, September 3, 1906, was mourned by the citizens of both towns as
that of a personal friend. His remains were interred in the cemetery at
Pomona, in which town so many years of his active and useful life had been
passed.
Indiana was Mr. Johnson's native state, and he was born in Greencastle.
April 1, 1 854 one of the younger children in a family of ten born to his
parents, Dixon and Nancy (Sewell) Johnson, both of the latter being natives
of Kentucky. Among the early settlers in Indiana who had crossed over the
Ohio River from Kentucky was Dixon Johnson, who settled down as a farmer in
that new country, but he was evidently not satisfied with the country for a
permanent location and some time after the birth of his son, Cassius C., he
removed to Vinton. Iowa, near which city he purchased a large farm. It was
there that his earth life came to a close, leaving to mourn his loss a widow
and a large family of children. The mother passed away some years later in
Willow Lake S. D. As he was a mere child when the family removed from
Indiana to Iowa, C. C. Johnson was reared almost entirely in the latter
state, attending first the public school of Vinton and later Vinton Academy.
Although reared on a farm he had no taste for farming himself, and as soon
as his school days were over he secured a position in a dry goods store in
Vinton with the idea of learning the business. When one has definite ideas
of a line of business, which he wishes to follow and with persistency
applies himself to its mastery, the victory is half won, and thus it was
with Mr. Johnson, for in a short time he was enabled to start in the dry
goods business on his own account. The failure of his health, however,
brought about a change in his plans and after disposing of his interests in
Iowa he came to California in 1881. The following year he purchased a ranch
of thirty acres on the corner of San Bernardino and Towne avenues. Here he
developed water, set out orchards, and later he subdivided the ranch into
one-acre and four-acre tracts, also opening Towne Avenue, In the meantime he
had been employed in the weighing department of the Southern Pacific
Railroad for about one year.
In 1895 Mr. Johnson removed to a foothill ranch east of San Antonio,
comprising several hundred acres. He gave this up, however, in the fall of
1900 and removed to Claremont, in order that his children could attend
Pomona College. After locating here he engaged in the real estate business,
and among other transactions with which his name was associated was the
laying out of a forty-acre tract on North Harvard Avenue, which he sold off
as C. C. Johnson's Addition to Claremont, and he also laid out another
forty-acre tract adjoining known as College Avenue Addition. This business
is still being carried on under the name of his son, J. D. Johnson. In 1902
he erected the fine residence now occupied by the family, located on North
Harvard Avenue. Far from being self-centered and interested in his own
private affairs only, Mr. Johnson was, on the other hand, broad-minded and
generous. He was a director in the Citizens' Light and Water Company, was
the organizer of the cooperative Water Company, which was located on his
ranch, also assisted in the organization of the Claremont Lumber Company,
the Citizens' State Bank and the Claremont Inn Company, of which latter he
was president. For many years he had served efficiently as school trustee
of Claremont and also served as selectman.
In Vinton Iowa, May 19, 1880, C. C. Johnson was married to Miss Louise
Moore, who was born in Durand, Ill., the daughter of Hubbard Moore. From
Vermont, his native state, Mr. Moore set out with the '49ers for the gold
region, but he did not remain long in the West at that time. Later he
removed to Beloit, Wis., and afterwards to Durand. Ill., and established
himself in the dry goods business, which he followed until removing to
Vinton, Iowa, there following the builder's trade. Removing from the Middle
West in 1881, he came to California and the same year purchased a ranch
adjoining Pomona, upon which he lived the remainder of his life, and in
addition to its management he also carried on contracting to some extent.
Mrs. Johnson's mother, Emma L. Peck, a native of Massachusetts, died in
Durand, Ill., when Mrs. Johnson was only nine months old and afterwards Mr.
Moore married her sister, who resided with Mrs. Johnson until her death.
Five children blessed the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Johnson: Albert, who is
engaged with the Standard Oil Company at Santa Barbara; James D., in the
real estate and insurance business in Claremont; Clarence was in the
Ordnance Department of the United States Army in the late war and is now
ranching at Claremont; Emma, deceased, and Katherine. Politically Mr.
Johnson was a strong Republican, and in his church affiliations was an
active member of the Congregational Church, of which at one time he was a
trustee. Thoroughly devoted to the interests of this part of California, he
was one of those citizens whose coming from the East meant so much to the
development and growth of the state.
Biographical Record of Coast Counties 1904 page 1236
ABRAM BLOCK. Numbered among the pioneers of California is this well-known
fruit-packer of Santa Clara, who is a representative of the forceful,
energetic German element of our population. The family of which he is a
member has long been connected with German Bohemia. There he was born
February 12, 1830. The same province was the birthplace of his parents, Z.
and Maria (Kafka) Block, the latter of whom died at forty-nine years of age,
and the former at the great age of one hundred and six years. The family
consisted of four sons and four daughters, to each of whom such advantages
were given as the means of the father permitted. The youngest of the
family, Abram, was educated in common schools and also under private
instruction. When a youth of fifteen years, in 1845, he accompanied a cousin
to the United States and settled in St. Louis, Mo., where he became a clerk
ill a dry goods establishment. For several years he remained in that city,
meanwhile gaining an excellent knowledge of the wholesale and retail
mercantile business in a large store on Carondelet avenue.
At that time California and its wonderful gold mines furnished the principal
theme of conversation and, naturally, the German youth began to make plans
to seek the Pacific coast. During January of 1853 he left St. Louis and
applied his earnings to thee payment of his passage via New Orleans and thee
Isthmus of Panama to San Francisco. Landing at the end of an uneventful
voyage, he proceeded to Nevada City where he engaged in a general mercantile
business. Three years later he returned to San Francisco and while there
the vigilance committee endeavored to place the lawless element in the city
under the control of justice and order. His store in Nevada City was burned
twice, once during the general conflagration on July 19, 1856, when hue lost
$67,000, without insurance, and the second in a conflagration in 1863. He
removed to Santa Clara in February 1878. Here he has since made his home,
meanwhile becoming closely identified with the fruit interests of the
valley. In the history of the fruit industry Santa Clara is prominent.
From this place, in 1869, L. A. Gould shipped the first car of fruit ever
sent from California to the Chicago market, the freight to that city costing
$900 per car, the fruit being shipped from the property now owned by Mr.
Block.
Since 1880 Mr. Block has been engaged in the fruit-packing business, and
such has been his success in the occupation that Inc now ships nine-tenths
of all the green fruit sent from this point. In extent and size of
consignments he has built up a business surpassed by none in Santa Clara
county. His brand may be seen in all the markets of the country and is in
demand by buyers, because it indicates a high quality of fruit. Besides
buying of other growers, he ships a large amount raised on his own places,
which consist of two hundred and fifty-seven acres in fruit, his specialties
being pears and plums. He also leases one hundred and sixty acres of orchard
in which pears are growing, besides over one hundred and fifty acres in the
lower part of the county. With every department of the fruit business he is
familiar. His long experience and great success have won for him the
confidence and respect of the people with whom he has had business
transactions.
In 1885 he was first made a member of the California State Board of
Horticulture, appointed by Governor Stoneman to fill a vacancy; he was
afterward appointed by Governor Waterman for a four years' term, filling the
office with great efficiency. He has also taken the greatest interest in
the welfare of tine community in which he has made his home for so many
years and in many ways has served the public. In 1887 he was appointed by
Governor Bartlett as one of the trustees of the Home for the Care and
Training of Feeble-minded Children, a state institution located in this
town.
Though appreciative of the value of a home, he has never married. He is a
hard-working, energetic and capable man, his success being largely due to
his perseverance and the close attention he has given to the demands of his
business. In his fraternal relations he is connected with Bay City Lodge
No. 71.1.0.0.F., in San Francisco, 5150 Wilder Encampment No, 23, in the
same city. A believer in the principles of Masonry, he is connected with
Fidelity Lodge, F. & A. M., and maintains an interest in the enterprises and
charities fostered by the order.
History of Orange County - 1921 page 919
SAMUEL DAVID TEEL.-Among the native sons of Orange County, S. D. Teel has
the distinction of being the son of Garden Grove's first permanent settler.
He follows the occupation of ranching, and specializes in raising sweet
potatoes, having purchased ten acres which he devotes to that purpose. He
also owns ten acres in the Bolsa Precinct which is planted to Valencia
oranges, and now has an exceptionally fine grove just coming into bearing.
He was born in Orange County, December 23, 1875, in what is now Buaro
precinct, one mile north of his present home, this section in those early
days being a part of Los Angeles County. His parents, George Milton and
Catherine (Harris) Teel, were born in Tennessee and Kentucky, respectively,
and were married in Texas, whither both had gone when young people. They
came to California in 1870, settling in what is now Garden Grove. When Mr.
Teel first arrived in California, coming from Texas with an ox team, he took
up his residence on what is known as the Dr. Head ranch, where he planted
potatoes, and from one sack of seed he harvested 120 sacks--equal to six
tons. He hauled lumber from Anaheim Landing to build his house and hauled
lumber to Anaheim as a teamster. The elder Teel, besides being the first
settler in Garden Grove was the first man to develop artesian water in this
district. He struck an artesian flow in 1871 and was one of the early orange
growers and fruit men demonstrating that the best of fruit could be grown
here. His death occurred at Garden Grove in 1903 at the age of seventy-six.
He was a Mason, retaining his membership in Texas. His widow survived him
until March 31, 1920, when she passed away aged eighty-three. Mr. and Mrs.
Teel were the parents of eight children: Georgia is Mrs. John Davis of
Garden Grove; Charles lives at Ukiah; Harris is a resident of Coalinga;
Edward, at Wintersburg; Samuel D., of this sketch; Alice is Mrs. W. E. Wells
and lives on the San Joaquin ranch; Ida is Mrs. Claude Blakesley of Garden
Grove; George M. Jr. the next to the youngest of the family, died on
November 5, 1918, during the influenza epidemic.
S. D. Teel is the fifth child in the parental family of eight children, and
was reared on his father's ranch. He attended the common schools and after
attaining his majority went to San Francisco and became an employee of the
California Electric Company, working for them at their powerhouse in San
Francisco for three years. He afterwards returned home and turned his
attention to ranching. His marriage, which occurred in 1908, united him
with Miss Josephine Kemble, a native of Colorado. The four children
resulting from this union are Joseph Kemble, Audrey V., Samuel David, Jr.,
and Genevieve M.
Mr. Teel has built a very cozy, modest home, to which he is constantly
adding conveniences, and the substantial improvements he is ever on the
alert to make on the ranch adds to its attractions materially. He it a
self-reliant, industrious, intelligent man, and makes his influence felt for
the common good. He was interested in getting the Buaro Drainage District
organized, and deservedly ranks among the enterprising and resourceful
citizens of his community. Fraternally he is a member of Santa Ana Lodge
No.241, F. & A. M., and politically is a staunch adherent of the principles
advocated in the platform of the Democratic Party.
History of Orange County - 1911 p635
SAMUEL E. TALBERT.
Although yet on the sunny side of life's prime Mr. Talbert has achieved
signal success in his various undertakings and has risen to a position of
considerable influence among the farmers of Orange county. Especially worthy
of mention, because gained through his own unaided efforts, is the
prominence to which he has risen and the wholesome influence he has exerted
in agricultural circles. With an enthusiasm that is contagious he throws
himself into enterprises for the good of the community and by his ardent
support and intelligent aid he has promoted many movements of permanent
benefit locally, while at the same time he has advanced his own interests
until he now ranks among the most prosperous men of his community.
Born in Piatt county, Ill., February 4, 1874, Samuel E. Talbert is the son
of James T. and Rachel (Weddle) Talbert, natives of Kentucky. The father,
who was born in 1840, removed to Illinois in boyhood with other members of
the family and settled in Piatt county. At the opening of the Civil war he
enlisted in the Union army and served under Generals Grant and Meade for
three years, participating in many battles with honor to himself. While he
was in the service his thrifty wife bought forty acres of land which until
recently was in the possession of the oldest daughter, Mrs. Mary Piper. On
the expiration of his term of service he returned to his Illinois home and
took up the duties of civic affairs, remaining in the same place until early
in 1892, when he came to California and settled at Long Beach.
The family consisted of the following children: Mrs. Mary Piper; Mrs. Nettie
Finety, deceased; Mrs. Eveline Irvine; Mrs. Francis McCullough, deceased;
Mrs. Lovina Miller; Samuel E.; Thomas B. and Henry E. In 1892 the family
removed to Long Beach and for some time were engaged in farming in that
locality. Prior to coming to California the wife and mother passed away in
Illinois.
Samuel E. Talbert was reared at home, received his schooling in the common
schools and was engaged in farming with his father until he was eighteen
years old, when he came to this state. He farmed for himself for four years
in the vicinity of Long Beach, at which time he came to Orange county, in
1897, and settled in what is now known as Talbert, which was named in his
honor. He bought three hundred and twenty acres of land, for which he paid
$40 per acre. Of this he later sold some to his brothers, Thomas and Henry,
and now retains one hundred acres for himself. He was one of the leaders in
converting a barren waste into one of the most productive sections of the
county. The locality where he located was known as Fountain Valley, but was
changed at the time the post-office was established and given the name of
the founder.
One of the most important incidents in the life of Mr. Talbert was his
marriage on January 26, 1895, to Miss Hattie L. Brady, who was born in Santa
Ana, August 24, 1880. She is the daughter of John and Louisa (Schrode)
Brady, formerly of Texas. In all of Mr. Talbert's undertakings she has been
his able assistant, and to her he owes much of his success. When he made his
first purchase of land he was able to pay down only one-third of the
purchase price, but by his far-sightedness he has been able to make the land
some of the most valuable in this section of the county.
When the Pacific Electric was prospected through to Huntington Beach he took
the contract to complete the line from the Santa Ana river to that place,
and the manner in which he executed his contract, in twenty-eight days, met
the approval and compliments of the officials. He organized a grading camp
and has handled many large undertakings. He was one of the originators of
the Talbert drainage district and has served as the president of the company
ever since. When he came to this section he brought stock with him, but the
stock died from drinking stagnant water and eating wild feed. This proved to
him that something must be done to remedy matters and in consequence he set
about organizing this company. The landowners put up $1 per acre to begin
the work and Mr. Talbert, as foreman and manager of the company, began to
cut the Willows ditch which adjoined his place. This was an eye-opener to
the rest of the people and he received a great deal of encouragement from
the newcomers to that section while those who had lived there some time held
back, believing the undertaking would be an impossibility. He often made
the assertion that celery would some day be raised in that section and also
that an electric line would be put through it. How true his prophecy was
proven, as this is one of the best sections in the west for celery and the
electric line has been the means of making the country. The name of Mr.
Talbert is better known in connection with the Neubert Protection district
than any other in the county, for it was through his influence that the
channel of the Santa Ana river was confined to its original bed. This
movement has raised the price of the land from its former price of from $7
to $12 per acre to between $400 and $500 per acre.
Mr. Talbert is a Mason and interested in the workings of the order and with
his wife attends the Methodist Church South. He is one of the public
spirited men of the county and one, too, who has always been active in the
up building of the institutions that have promoted the county to take the
lead in Southern California and while he has neither had time nor
inclination for public office, casts his vote with the Republican party and
has refused to allow his name to be presented for favors. Both himself and
wife enjoy the esteem of a wide circle of friends.
History of Orange County page 1186
SAMUEL E. TALBERT-Not many men have the honor to be the leading citizens of
their districts, or to have an embryo town named after them, as is the case
with Samuel Edmonson Talbert, whose honored family will be celebrated in the
name given to Talbert, Orange County. He was born in Piatt County, Ill., on
February 4, 1874, and his father was James T. Talbert, a native of Kentucky,
who went to Illinois when he was a young man. In Piatt County he was married
to Miss Rachel Weddle and when the Civil War broke out, he enlisted in one
of the Illinois volunteer infantry regiments, and four years with the Union
Army. He sent to his wife, while he was in the field as much money as he
could save, and with it she invested in forty acres of Piatt County and
there he settled after the war.
Samuel was eight years old when his mother died, leaving eight children:
Mary, the oldest is the wife of William Piper, and resides at Deshler, Henry
County, Ohio; Nettie became the wife of Fred Finity and died in Los Angeles,
leaving a son named James; Eva is the wife of J. B. Irwin, and resides in
Orange County Park, Orange County, Cal. Frances married a Missouri
attorney, David McCullem, and died, the mother of three children; Lavina
resides at Chestnut, Ill., and is the wife of Joe Miller, a farmer: Samuel
E., the subject of our sketch, was the sixth in the order of birth; T.B.
Talbert, the next, is the Orange County supervisor; and Henry E. resides at
Huntington Beach, having married Ella McGowan, by whom he has had one child,
Henry Kime.
After a boyhood and youth spent in Piatt County, Ill., until he was
eighteen, Samuel left Illinois on his birthday, accompanied by his father
and brothers, destined for California. They reached Long Beach, where an
uncle, William Talbert, lived, on February 9, 1892. He had attended the
public schools in Illinois, and he continued his schooling at Lucerne, Los
Angeles County, where his father rented a ranch. They went up to Antelope
Valley, but did not like it, and traveled around to other places; and
finally, in November 1896, came down to Fountain Valley or what used to be
called Gospel Swamp. While he was a resident at Long Beach, James T.
Talbert became prominent as a member of the Grand Army of the Republic; and
at Long Beach he died on May 18, 1918, in the seventy-seventh year of his
age.
Father and son bought 320 acres of hand, of which a cousin W. 0. Afer, took
forty acres and now Samuel owns 178 acres of the best land at Talbert. He
has eleven flowing wells one and two on each twenty acres, and a fine
bungalow residence, which he remodeled about four years ago; but it is
rather for what he has done for the county, than for what he possesses, that
he is best known, and most honored.
He was the main spirit, for example, in organizing the Talbert Drainage
district, and made the first ditch, and has made nearly all the other
drainage ditches in that district since. On account of the land lying so
low and near to the water-level of the Pacific Ocean the question was asked,
whether the hand could be drained at all; and when many doubted, Mr. Talbert
both said that it could, and actually drained it. Twenty thousand dollars'
worth of bonds were voted, to build the ditches, which are constructed on
the east, side of the section line, or the half-section as the case may be,
and the dirt has been put on the west side of the ditches, to throw the
drainage down toward Newport Bay and make the roads in the district.
The flood of 1916 filled up the bay, and a new channel was cut below Newport
Bay and Huntington Beach. That filled up with sand, and it became necessary
to put two 54-inch galvanized corrugated iron pipes leading into the ocean,
equipped with gates to keep the water back during high tide, at a cost of
$5,000 to Talbert district, This project has reclaimed about 1,000 acres
belonging to the Pacific Gun Club. The Talbert drainage district contains
15,000 acres now excellent land for the growing of sugar beets, lima beans
and celery; and to such an extent has drainage been the making of the
district that farm land there is now worth as high as $1,000 an acre and
rents for $25 to $75 an acre, where formerly there was only a swamp covered
with willows and tules and could have been bought for from $12.50 to $40.00
per acre.
Mr. Talbert was also the first to devise plans and later to dig ditches to
keep the Santa Ana River from spreading over this entire delta country. He
secured a right-of-way for deepening and making a new channel for the said
Santa Ana River from Seventeenth Street in Santa Ana to the ocean, and took
the contract to dig the channel, and successfully dug it, This has confined
the river to its new channel and protected the farming lands from flood
water. No money was available for this work at first; the Newbert Protection
District was organized, bonds were voted and he was made president and
manager and the success of the enterprise followed. His work was highly
praised by engineers and he has repeatedly been the subject of interesting
write-ups in the Santa Ana and Los Angeles papers.
With his brother, T. B. Talbert, our subject secured the right-of-way for
the Pacific Electric Railway. - He excavated the roadbed, moved houses and
grubbed trees, and graded six miles of the route from Huntington Beach to
the Santa Ana River.
History of Ventura County page 116
JUDGE MERTON BARNES.
Among the citizens of Ventura County who have filled a distinctive place in
the affairs of their respective communities, none takes precedence over
Judge Merton Barnes, who after a most interesting and varied career has
become one of the enterprising and progressive businessmen of this locality,
where he has attained a high place in public esteem and confidence. He was
born at Eyota, Minnesota, on the 30th of May 1868, but was reared in
Stockton, Rooks County, Kansas, to which place the family had moved in his
early youth. After completing the public school course he attended and was
graduated from the Kansas State University where he became a member of the
Sigma Nu fraternity.
In 1887 Mr. Barnes came to Ventura, California, where he served as a clerk
in the office of the county clerk, after which he became associated with
Sol. N. Sheridan in the publication of the Ventura Republican. Later he
established and ran for a time the San Fernando World, at San Fernando,
California. He then went to Los Angeles and became a conductor on the
electric street railway, taking out the fourth car to run on that line after
it was electrified. Thereafter, for nearly two years, as deputy state
organizer for the Knights of the Maccabees, he instituted many tents of this
order, among them Tent No. 6, now the largest in southern California. As a
member of the cast of a traveling theatrical organization he then played
through Washington and Oregon for nearly two years. Later, for nearly three
years, he was assistant circulation manager of the Seattle Daily Star. He
then returned to Ventura and was engaged in the grocery business for five
years, during which period he put into effect a number of original ideas of
his own, one of which was the now famous "Cash and Carry" policy, he being
the originator of the phrase, "cash and carry", and the first man in the
world to conduct a "cash and carry" store, of which there are now thousands
throughout the United States and Europe. He was also the first man to charge
for deliveries from the store, which is a part of the "cash and carry" plan,
unless the dealer chooses to eliminate deliveries entirely. He was an
original advertiser and his "ads" were widely copied by the trade journals
throughout the country, one of which journals, the Chicago Inland Store
Keeper, solicited and published two articles by Mr. Barnes explaining in
detail the "cash and carry" plan, its origin and operation. Had Judge Barnes
copyrighted the "cash and carry" plan he might now have been independently
wealthy. However, it is the writer's pleasure to give him whatever credit
and fame is due him as the father of this extremely meritorious and
worldwide-adopted idea. On January 10, 1912, Mr. Barnes came to Fillmore
and established the first real motion picture house in this city. He was
very successful in the operation of this theater, and in 1922 he erected the
present splendid house, known as Barnes' Picture Theater. His efforts in
the way of public entertainment have been fully appreciated by the amusement
loving public, and he has received a well-merited patronage from the
representative people of the community. He has carefully excluded from his
house everything that could in any way offend the most refined taste and has
catered to the best class of patrons.
In 1898 Mr. Barnes was married to Miss Frances Kingsberry, and they are the
parents of four children, namely: Henry K., who is the local agent for the
New York Life Insurance Company, and who is married and has two children,
Edna June; Guy W., who is associated with his father as manager of the
Barnes theater, and Barbara, who is a student in the southern branch of the
University of California. Fraternally Judge Barnes is a member of Ventura
Lodge No. 1430, Benevolent Protective Order of Elks; Fillmore Lodge, Knights
of Pythias and the Woodmen of the World. He belongs to the Fillmore Rotary
Club and the Fillmore Citizens Club and is a member of the board of
directors of the Fillmore Chamber of Commerce, of which he has served a
total of five years as president, though not in consecutive years. Since
1912 he has rendered effective service as justice of the peace, discharging
the duties of the office in an able and impartial manner, and being
reelected, without opposition at the close of each term. Because of his
sterling qualities of character, sound business ability, splendid public
spirit and genial disposition, he has long occupied an exalted place in the
confidence and esteem of the entire community. He has been a constant and
consistent booster for Fillmore and his efforts in that direction have been
recognized and fully appreciated by his fellow citizens.
Biographical Record of the State of CA - San Joaquin Valley CA page 1585
MILLS ELEY. Prominent among the representative stockmen of Fresno
community, Mills Eley is engaged in this work in the vicinity of Pulaski,
while he makes his home in Fresno at No. 925 O Street. He was born in
Talladega, Ala., in 1858, a son of Merritt Eley. The elder man was a native
of Madison County, Ala., where his father, Mills Eley, had removcd from his
home in Virginia, which had been established there many generations earlier
by English ancestors. Mills Eley had proven a patriot in time of need,
taking part under General Jackson in the war of 1812. He died early in life,
his family of children being reared on the paternal homestead. As a boy
Merritt Eley went to Talladega County, where he engaged as a planter in
manhood. During the Civil war he served in an Alabama regiment. He died in
March 1870, at the early age of forty-six years. Religiously he was a
member of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, in which he acted as ruling
elder. In January 1854, he was united in marriage with Sophronia
Blasingame, a native of Marshall county, Ala., and a daughter of Jesse
Blasingame. He was a native of the Carolinas. He located as a planter in
Marshall County, Ala., where he married Mary Walker, whose parents were from
South Carolina. Mrs. Eley brought her family to California in 1876, and
entered land in the vicinity of Fresno, where she engaged in the stock
business. She is the mother of nine children, seven of whom are still
living.
Mills Eley, the subject of this sketch, was reared on the paternal farm in
Alabama until 1876, in which year he accompanied his mother to California,
his education being received in the common schools of his native state. On
his mother's property he engaged in stock-raising, and in 1878 entered into
the business for himself. He located first on Kings river, where he
remained one year, thence going to Academy, where he began the sheep
business, his range at that time being in what is now Madera county. He
entered land and also homesteaded a farm eight miles east of Borden, where
he made all improvements amid gave intelligent effort to the success of his
enterprise. Later he sold out and located his home in Fresno, while he
still conducts the sheep business on his ranch northwest of Pulaski, which,
since 1903, has been a partnership affair, A. H. and L.A. Blasingame being
interested with him. They have over twenty thousand acres of pasture land
for their sheep, which number from ten to fifteen thousand head of a good
grade of mutton stock. This enterprise has been one of the most successful
in Fresno County, amid has named Mr. Eley among the representative stockmen
of the section. For many years he has been a member of the National Sheep
Breeders' Association, and fraternally was made a Mason in Fresno Lodge No.
247, amid is also a member of Trigo Chapter No.69, R. A. M. Politically he
is a Democrat amid am ex-member of the county central committee.
William HAZELTON in History of San Joaquin Valley
WILLIAM HAZELTON. A pioneer and one of the most extensive stockmen on the
Upper Kings river, William Hazelton holds a high place among the
representative citizens of this section of Fresno county. A native of
Albany county, N. Y., he was born September 7, 1825, a son of Joseph
Hazelton, of New Jersey, who located in New York state, where he engaged as
a blacksmith until his death. His wife, formerly Sophia Cleveland, was born
in New York state, where she also died. They were the parents of four sons
and three daughters all of whom are deceased except the youngest, William
Hazelton. He received his education in the common schools of his native
locality, where in young manhood he engaged as a clerk in a mercantile
establishment. In 1845 he went to New York City and enlisted in the United
States Second Dragoons, and was later stationed in Florida and the vicinity
of the Choctaw nation. Being discharged from the service about the time of
the Mexican war, he went to Mexico as a teamster in the commissary
department, where he remained throughout the war. Returning to New York in
1848, he followed this with a trip across the plains to California, coming
by way of Texas and spending the winter of 1849 in San Diego, Cal. He
located in the northern mines, where he met with moderate success, remaining
until 1853, when he came to his present place on the Upper Kings river,
taking up a quarter section of land, where - he has since engaged in
stock-raising. He has continued to add to his property by purchase until he
now owns over seven thousand acres, on which he has a herd of seven hundred
cattle.
In this locality, in 1857, Mr. Hazelton was united in marriage with Mary
Jane Akers, a native of Sabine county, Tex., and the daughter of Henry
Akers, who was born in Illinois. He located first in Missouri, later in
Texas, and in 1852 came to California and located near the home of Mr.
Hazelton, where he engaged in farming and stock-raising until his death.
His wife, formerly Delilah Miller, was born in Illinois and died in
California. To Mr. Hazelton and his wife were born the following children
Clara E., the wife of F. R. Lindsey of Sanger Cal.; Wesley B., of Sanger;
Henry a stockman in Laura D., at home; Sophia, the wife of George D. Fisk,
of Yolo county, Cal.; Catherine, deceased; John, deceased; Alice C., the
wife of R. M. Kimball, of Napa county, Cal.; and Edward, deceased.
Politically, Mr. Hazelton is a stanch adherent of the principles advocated
in the platform of the Democratic party. Although eighty years old he is
still hale and hearty and takes a keen and active interest in all his
affairs and shows still the superior judgment and business ability which
have made his success.
Extracted from a submission by Sophia HAZELTON GERNER to Ash Tree Echo
Vol 1, issue 2 Sept Oct 1966 page 10ff
Joseph HAZELTON b 14 Aug 1773; d 5 July 1828
-sp Sophia CLEVELAND b I Jun 1783; d ____
Children:
Sally HAZELTON b 1 Aug 1804
-sp Mr. ANDERSON
Cecelia ANDERSON
Augusta ANDERSON
Joseph ANDERSON
Hannah HAZELTON b 8 Feb 1806; d 8 Jun 1825
Samuel HAZELTON b 4 Jul 1808
John HAZELTON b 4 Jul 1810
-sp Martha _______
Sophia HAZELTON
Mary HAZELTON
Gertrude HAZELTON
James HAZELTON b 4 Feb 1814; d 22 Aug _____ Coeymans NY
-sp Elizabeth MYERS of NY
Cynthia Ann b 6 Jul 1817
William (see below)
William M. "Yank" HAZELTON b 7 Sep 1824/5 Coeymans, Albany Co NY;
d 20 Jul 1906 Ockendaon, Shaver Lake, Fresno CA
Married 6 Sept 1857
Mary Jane AKERS b 22 Jan 1840; d 26 Aug 1910 Calistoga CA
Children:
1. Clara Elvina HAZELTON LINDSEY b 29 Nov 1858;
d 26 Jun 1950 Kings River CA
2. Wesley Blaisdell HAZELTON b 3 Feb 1860; d 2 Mar 1948 Sanger CA
-SP Amelia Anne BACON b Mariposa County CA md 31 Jul 1881
Children:
John Wesley HAZELTON
Eva Belle HAZELTON
Sophia HAZELTON GERNER
-sp A. J. GERNER
George Edward HAZELTON
Edith HAZELTON DANIELS
-sp Henry DANIELS
Fred Bacon HAZELTON
Alice HAZELTON PRICE
-sp C. J. PRICE
Ida Mae HAZELTON SCHWALB
-sp Robert SCHWALB
3 . Henry Huckaby HAZELTON b 1 Dec 1860; d 1956 Fresno CA
(adopted son, his mother was sister to Mary Jane AKERS - Margy Ann AKERS,
and his father was David HUCKABY)
-SP (1) Mary K. SIMPSON
-SP (2) Gertrude PARSONS md Apr 5 1885 Minkler CA;
died summer of 1956 Fresno
Children:
Wm. Henry
Edna Frances BARRINGER
Louise Gertrude (IMRIE)
Ernest
Mary Elizabeth WOODS
Reuel M.
Robert
Walter Francis
Carl
4. Laura Delilah HAZELTON b 17 Jun 1862; d 19 Jun 1932 Santa Cruz CA
5. Sophia HAZELTON FISKE b 1 Dec 1863; d 6 Apr 1922 Esparto
6. Catherine HAZELTON b 20 May 1865; d 5 Oct 1866 Kings River
7. John HAZELTON b 19 Mar 1867; d 4 Mar 1872 Kings River
8. Alice "Cecilia" HAZELTON KIMBALL b 6 Aug 1869;
d 29 Dec 1943 St. Helena CA
9. Edward HAZELTON b 8 Dec 1871; d 9 Nov 1894 Kings River
Fresno Blue Book 1941 page 533
WESLEY B. HAZELTON
Few couples live to celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary, but recently
Mr. and Mrs. Wesley B. Hazelton of Sanger have achieved this distinction.
They were married in Fresno County on July 31, 1881-Mrs. Hazelton's maiden
name having been Amelia Anne Bacon before her marriage.
Wesley B. Hazelton is the son of one of the first settlers in Fresno County,
his father, William Hazelton, having come to California in 1849. He settled
first at San Diego, and in 1853 came to the San Joaquin Valley and
homesteaded on the 'veil known Hazelton ranch where the Kings river
debouches from the Sierra hills. It was here that W. B. Hazelton was born,
February 3, 1860. His mother, Mary Jane (Akers) Hazelton, who died in 1910,
was a member of another family of the first decade of Fresno history-. Five
generations of Hazeltons have now worked on the old home place, and Wesley
Hazelton's eldest son, John W., now is in charge of it.
W. B. Hazelton's mother is said to have planted the first orange tree in the
San Joaquin Valley.
W. B. Hazelton attended school at what was first called Hazelton district
and now Orangedale. He lived on the home ranch, which he still owns, until
thirty-five years ago, when he moved to Sanger. In addition to the old home
place, other land has been bought, so that today the family holdings include
about 3,000 acres of which nearly one hundred acres are in oranges. For
years Mr. Hazelton has been engaged in cattle raising, and notwithstanding
his eighty-one years, he still rides the range.
Mr. Hazelton is one of the largest stockholders in the Sanger Citrus
Association, which he helped organize in 1920, and has served as president
almost from the beginning.
Mr. and Mrs. Hazelton are the parents of three sons and five daughters, and
they have seventeen grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren. The sons
and daughters are: John W, Eva Belle, Sophia (Mrs. A. J. Gerner), George E.,
Edith (Mrs. Harry Daniels), Fred B., Alice (Mrs. C. J. Price), and Ida May
(Mrs. Robert Schwalb). It is almost unbelievable to record that there has
never been a death in the immediate family of Mr. and Mrs. W. B. Hazelton.
Mr. Hazelton has achieved a place of financial security through careful
planning of his affairs, and being particularly careful about not going into
debt. During the worst of the depression years, he always put a little money
aside. When he was building up his cattle business, he added to his herd
gradually. His life is a wonderful example for the young people of the
present day, too, many of whom make it a policy to "spend it all."
The Hazeltons are members of the Presbyterian Church, and Mrs. Hazel-ton has
been active in this organization since girlhood.
Fresno Community Book 1948 page 281
WESLEY B. HAZELTON
The oldest native of Fresno County residing in Sanger, and one of the oldest
in Fresno County, is Wesley B. Hazelton, representative of one of the most
prominent pioneer families of the county. He is the son of one of the first
settlers in Fresno County, his father, William Hazelton, having come to
California in 1849. He settled first at San Diego, and in 1853 came to the
San Joaquin Valley and homesteaded on the well-known Hazelton ranch where
the Kings River debouches from the Sierra hills. It was here that Wesley B.
Hamilton was born, February 3, 1860. His mother, Mary Jane (Akers) Hazelton,
who died in 1910, was a member of another family of the first decade of
Fresno history. Five generations of Hazeltons have now worked on the old
home place, and Wesley Hazelton's eldest son now is the owner.
Mr. Hazelton attended school at what was first called Hazelton district and
now Orangedale. He lived on the home ranch until forty years ago, when he
moved to Sanger. In addition to the old home place, other land has been
bought, so that today the family holdings include very large acreage, of
which about seventy-five acres are in bearing oranges. For many veers
Hazelton has been one of the well-known cattlemen of the county, and
notwithstanding his eighty-six years, he still rides the range.
One of the largest stockholders in the Sanger Citrus Association, which he
helped to organize in 1920, Mr. Hazelton served as President for about
twenty years. He was a director of the old Commercial Bank of Sanger, the
predecessor of the local branch of the Bank of America, on the Advisory
Board of which he still serves.
Recently his property has been deeded to the eight children, the oldest son,
John W., still living on the old home place, which includes a section of the
orange grove. Two other sons have the cattle ranch, while the five girls
share the larger acreage of orange groves.
Mr. Hazelton was united in marriage to Miss Amelia Bacon, daughter of Thomas
and Lucinda Bacon, who came across the plains with an ox-team in the early
days. Mr. and Mrs. Hazelton have recently celebrated their sixty-fifth
wedding anniversary, having been married in this county on July 31, 1881.
They are the parents of three sons and five daughters, and have seven-teen
grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren. It is almost unbelievable to
record that there has never been a death in the immediate family of Mr. and
Mrs. W. B. Hazelton.
Mr. and Mrs. Hazelton are members of the Presbyterian Church, Mrs. Hazelton
having been active in the church since girlhood. Another affiliation of Mr.
Hazelton's is the Sanger Kiwanis Club, of which he was an early member and
he has a 100% attendance record since joining.
Mr. Hazelton has achieved a place of financial security through careful
planning of his affairs, and being particularly careful about not going into
debt. During the worst of the depression years, he always put a 1ittle money
aside. When he was building up his cattle business, he added to his herd
gradually. His life is a wonderful example for the young people of the
present day, many of whom make it a policy to "spend it all."
History of Fresno County 1933 Page 214
W. B. HAZELTON
Wesley B. Hazelton is the son of one of the first settlers in Fresno County,
his father, William Hazelton, having come to California in 1849. He settled
first at San Diego, and in 1853 came to the San Joaquin Valley and
homesteaded on the well-known Hazelton ranch where the Kings River debouches
from the Sierra hills.
It was here that W. B. Hazelton was born, February 3, 1860. His mother, Mary
Jane (Akers) Hazelton, who died in 1910 (Mary J. HAZELTON died at age 70 on
August 26, 1910 in Napa), was a member of another family of the first decade
of Fresno history. Four generations of Hazeltons have now worked on the old
home place, and Wesley Hazelton's eldest son, John, now is in charge of it.
W. B. Hazelton attended school at what was first called Hazelton district
and now Orangedale. He lived on the home ranch, which he still owns, until
twenty-six years ago, when he moved to Sanger. In addition to the old home
place, other land has been bought, so that today the family holdings include
about 3,000 acres of which nearly one hundred acres are in oranges. Mr.
Hazelton was for many years engaged in cattle raising, but closed out this
side of his business about a year ago.
On the old family place are two of the oldest orange trees in the county,
planted by W. B. Hazelton's mother in 1862. There is also one of the oldest
and largest fig trees in Fresno County on the ranch, which is still bearing.
W. B. Hazelton is one of the largest stockholders in the Sanger Citrus
association, which he helped organize in 1920, and has served as president
almost from the beginning.
Mrs. Hazelton was Amelia Bacon, daughter of Thomas Bacon, and a native of
Mariposa County. They were married in 1881, and have eight children John W.,
Eva Bell (now a nurse at San Mateo); Sophia (Mrs. A. J. Gerner); George E.,
living at Santa Cruz; Edith (Mrs. Harry Daniels}; Fred B., Alice (Mrs. C. J.
Price), of Taft, and Ida May (Mrs. Robert Schwalb), of San Francisco.
History of Plumas, Lassen and Sierra in 1882 page 411
THOMAS J. MULRONEY - He was born in County Kilkenny, Ireland, August 13,
1838. Nine years later the family emigrated to the United States, settling
in New York, where Thomas lived until 1857, spending some time in Wisconsin,
New Jersey, and Georgia. He came to in 1857, via the Isthmus, arriving in
August. He mined for a year on Soda bar, in Plumas county. In the fall of
1858 he came to Lassen county, and engaged in farming and packing. He
bought an interest with his brother Edward in a ranch near Susanville, in
1860, which he sold in 1864. In 1862, with Edward and two others, he bought
a ranch of 820 acres, four miles east of Janesville. Since 1865 he has been
the sole owner of this property, where be still resides. In politics, Mr.
Mulroney is a democrat. He married Miss Sarah Thompson, April 6, 1866. She
was born in Monroe county, New York, June 9, 1849. Their children were all
born in Honey Lake valley: William, January 12, 1868, died July 15, 1869;
Ellen, August 18, 1869; Mice, January 24, 1872; Thomas, January 14, 1874;
Mary, February 12, 1877; Edward, November 12,1881.
From History of Solano and Napa Counties p996
ISIDORO CHARLES BRAGHETTA.
A native of Switzerland, born in Canton Ticino, February 22, 1861, Mr.
Braghetta came to this country at the age of twenty, with only a few dollars
in his pocket and no friends to give him more. Coming to California in
1881, he worked on a dairy ranch at Guallala, Sonoma County, where he had an
opportunity to learn the dairying business as conducted in this country. Ten
months later he came to Napa County and for fifteen months worked in a
vineyard on Cedar Knoll ranch, formerly known as the Old Hagan ranch.
Hearing of an opening on a dairy ranch three miles north of Vallejo, Solano
County, he went there and engaged to work for wages. The next important
step was his association in the dairy business with Charles Cantoni, on the
Holyoke ranch of four hundred and twenty acres. For thirteen years they
operated the dairy near Napa Junction, and then, in 1897, the partnership
was amicably dissolved. It had been productive of much good in the
experience of Mr. Braghetta for the two worked together with unanimity of
purpose and profited by the united effort.
In 1898 Mr. Braghetta bought two hundred and sixteen acres of the
Holyoke ranch which he has in wheat, oats and barley, besides which he has
a dairy of about forty cows.
Mr. Braghetta is a member of the United Order of Red Men, Vallejo Lodge,
and is school trustee of Soscol district. He was married in 1893 to
Josephine Beltrametti and they have three children: Eliza, Olga and Mary.
Mr. Braghetta is a successful rancher and is honored for
his integrity, enterprise and honesty of purpose.
From History of Santa Clara County by Eugene Taylor Sawyer P1616
WILLIAM J. SANOR - As a native son of California and a representative of a
pioneer family, W. J. Sanor has proved himself a worthy descendant of one
of the most respected pioneers of California. Born September 8, 1888 in San
Jose, he is a son of J. E. and Sarah (Higgins) Sanor, both natives of
California, and reared in Santa Clara County. The grandfather, Michael
Sanor, was an Ohioan by birth, his father and mother being among the early
settlers of Columbiana County. He came of a family of farmers, and when they
left Ohio in the spring of 1839 and journeyed to Ray County, Mo., they
settled on a farm, but Michae1 was not content with farming, so learned
wool-carding and the cabinet-maker's trade. He was employed at these
occupations until the gold excitement of 1849, when with his father and two
of his brothers he crossed the plains with ox teams, reaching Carson Valley
early in September 1849 after a little more than four months. Only a short
time was spent in the mines, when Mr. Sanor settled on a farm in Santa Clara
County, commencing the improvement of a farm of 148 acres in the vicinity of
Santa Clara. There the family lived until 1887, when he disposed of his
ranch and purchased a home on Delmas Avenue, and while residing there, the
mother passed away. The father of our subject, J. E. Sanor, was for many
years a businessman of Santa Clara, but he is now living a retired life
W.J. Sanor was educated in the schools of Santa Clara. After r graduating
from the high school, he went on the road as a wholesale cigar salesman and
followed it for ten years; later he entered business for himself and he has
steadily increased in volume from year to year. Mr. Sanor's marriage united
him with Miss Janie Murray and they are the parents of five children ~
William J. Jr., George H., Sadie Mae, Frances and Janie. Mr. Sanor is a
member of the Observatory Parlor N. S. G. W., San Jose.
From History of Santa Clara County p1438
C. G. SPARGUR -- For many years a leading stockman of Modoc County. Cal., C.
G. Spargur, has recently purchased a flue ranch home near Mountain View and
with his wife are a welcome acquisition to the community. A native of
Carson City, Nev., he was born on February 24, 1872, and when but a year
old, his parents brought him to Modoc County, Cal., where he grew up and
received his schooling. While in his early manhood he became interested in
the cattle business, and by steady application to this line of work, became
a large stockman and farmer of Modoc County, his acreage finally aggregating
1460 acres of land and for years he kept from 500 to 600 head of cattle,
raising them and marketing them in San Francisco. By hard work and
intelligent planning, he prospered well. In 1917 he sold his property in
Modoc County and removed to San Francisco, where he resided until he
purchased his ranch at Mountain View. Mrs. Spargur was Miss Dora Gray of
Modoc County, and in September of 1920 they settled in Mountain View on
their beautiful and highly improved twenty-acre ranch on the El Monte Road.
There are ten acres in prune orchard and ten acres devoted to apricots and
is located in one of the finest fruit and residence districts of the county.
Mr. and Mrs. Spargur enjoy their beautiful country home, and enter heartily
into the spirit of the community which is given to horticulture, rather than
stock raising which they had engaged in in Modoc County, and find it an
agreeable change. Mr. Spargur is a 32nd degree Mason, being a member of the
lodge at Alturas, Cal., and of the Consistory at San Jose, and with his wife
belongs to the Eastern Star Chapter at Mountain View.
From Death certificate:
Charles G. Spargur born Carson City Nevada
From Annals of San Bernadino County 1769-1904 p304
William Pickett came to San Bernardino in 1858, from San Francisco, where he
had been one of the earliest arrivals from the east. He was of more than
average ability and although brought up to the trade of a printer was a good
lawyer. He brought with him to this city a very good law library-the first
law library of any consequence in San Bernardino. At one time he had his
office in a little one-room shack on Third street--suitable office rooms
were not plenty in the town at that time--and he gave permission to a newly
elected justice of the peace to hold his court and transact his business in
the same office until he could procure one of his own. Not long afterward
Pickett as attorney in a suit before this justice and the latter made
several rulings against him ~ the admission and rejection of testimony. This
was more than Pickett could stand in his own office, especially as the case
was going against him on its merits. In his wrath he ordered the court out
of his office-a ruling to which the court meekly submitted. Picking up his
docket and his hat, the magistrate directed the jury to re-convene at
another place. But there was not much re-convening. Some of them went to
the place indicated by the court, some tarried by the wayside, some went the
other way, and that was the last of the case in court. Pickett was inclined
to be somewhat aggressive in a court which did not know how, or did not have
spunk enough to keep him within bounds. But before a competent court with
courage to maintain its dignity he knew how and always did keep within the
bounds of decorum. He remained here about four years then removed to Los
Angeles and later to San Francisco.
Don Carlos PICKETT died age 75 in San Francisco July 26 1928
twin brother of William PICKETT, Jr. and brother to the late Josephine SMITH
aka Ina COOLBRITH (CA first poet Laureate)
Son of Wm PICKETT, Sr and Agnes COOLBRITH SMITH PICKETT
Wm. H. PICKETT spouse C. died age 58 Sacramento, July 3 1924
Mrs. Wm H. PICKETT died Feb 16 1949 Sacramento.
From History of San Joaquin County page 523
WILLIAM H. THRUSH. -A California agriculturist who well has merited, by his
progressive, scientific industry and his practical results of value to
others as well as himself, all the prosperity which has finally crowned his
efforts up to the present day, is William H. Thrush, whose splendid ranch on
the Waterloo Road has become as fine a demonstration as would be possible of
the productivity of San Joaquin County soil. A native son, he was born in
the Harmony Grove district of this county, one-mile west of the Harmony
Grove schoolhouse, on March 14, 1861, the only son of George and Dora
Elizabeth (Ebeling) Thrush both now deceased.
George Thrush was born in Pennsylvania and when a small boy he was taken to
Ohio by his parents, where they lived a short time and then removed to
Missouri, where he grew to manhood and lived until he came west in 1862. He
had married in Missouri and settled down to farm pursuits until the news of
the discovery of gold induced him to come to California. Leaving his wife
and daughters-all then small children-he started overland with a mule and an
ox team and a companion, in the '50s, and in due time arrived at his
destination. Some time after locating in this state he and his friend took
the smallpox and his friend died; and as soon as he had recovered from the
disease he went back East to join his family and at the same time determined
to make a permanent location in the Golden State. Settling his affairs he
outfitted and with Mrs. Thrush and daughters made the long overland trip
driving an ox-cart while his wife drove a mule-team taking the Salt Lake
route to California. He was accompanied by Henry Ebeling, the youngest
brother of his wife, and he later died in this state. Upon arrival here Mr.
Thrush hauled supplies to the mines and later engaged in ranching in the
Harmony Grove district where he settled upon his arrival. He sold out his
holdings in that locality and bought 640 acres near Modesto and raised grain
there until 1871, when he concluded he would try farming back in Missouri
once more. Renting his land and equipment with his family he returned to
Missouri, bought and stocked a good farm, but only lived there six mouths
when he turned again to California. He lived for a time in San Jose and
Santa Clara, then came to San Joaquin County in 1874, bought 320 acres of
land on the Waterloo Road, eight miles from Stockton, and from that date
this section remained his home until his death, September 8, 1907, at the
age of seventy-eight years. Mrs. Thrush died at the age of sixty-three.
The following children were born to this worthy couple: Ellen married
Russell Kincade of Long Beach, and died in 1922, leaving two boys and four
girls; Louise is the widow of D. I. Hancock and makes her home with her only
daughter, Mrs. Ed Branstead, near Stockton; Marine became the wife of
William Bonham and has two sons and one daughter; Edith is the widow of
Henry Leffler and the mother of three boys; Fanny is the widow of Nicholas
Bacon of Stockton and has one boy and two girls; Alice is Mrs. Wilkes
Foreman of Oakland; the seventh in order of birth is William H., our
subject; Dora married Thomas Brierly of Oakland and they have one daughter.
The last two children were born in California.
William H. Thrush remained at home with his father until he was twenty-one
and then started to farm for himself. He leased 160 acres near Linden and
raised grain for three years, then came back to the old Thrush ranch on the
Calaveras River and in 1892 bought eighty acres of the home estate; later he
added ninety-five acres adjoining, part of the Martin property, and this he
farms to grain with the exception of about jour acres that he has planted to
alfalfa. In 1914 he bought fifty acres of bare land near Linden that he has
leased for a period of years and which will be set to fruit trees and vines.
Mr. Thrush also owns considerable real estate in Stockton, which makes it
more natural that, as a public-spirited citizen and loyal Republican that he
should favor any legislation encouraging and protecting agricultural and
industrial development. He has made his own way since leaving home and his
success is the result of his own efforts.
At Stockton, August 26, 1885, Mr. Thrush was married to Miss Allie Anderson,
a native of Carson City, Nevada, and the daughter of William H. and Jane
(McBride) Anderson. Her father was born in Hamilton County, Ind., August
22, 1838, and now makes his home with Mr. and Mrs. Thrush. When a child he
was taken to Van Buren County, Iowa, by his parents and there reared and
educated. He came across the plains to Nevada in 1864, mined and freighted
for two years. In 1866 he came to San Joaquin County and until 1886 farmed
leased land in the vicinity of Waterloo, then he spent fifteen years in
Mendocino County lumbering and since then has lived retired. He is of
Scotch ancestry, his paternal grandfather having served in the Revolutionary
War, Mrs. Anderson was born in Ohio of Irish parents and she died at the age
of thirty-six, leaving two children, H. G. Anderson, an employee of the
General Petroleum Company in the Coalinga oil field and Mrs. Thrush.
From CADI George THRUSH died in Healdsburg, Sonoma County at age 78 on
September 8 1907.
Listed as the father of Mary KINGCADE (yes, g was put in the name) of Long
Beach, Louisa HANCOCK of Waterloo, Marine BONHAM of Linden, Edith LEFFLER of
Waterloo, Fanny BACON of Linden, William H. THRUSH of Waterloo, Alice
FOREMAN of Healdsburg, Dora BRYERLEY of Oakland. A native of PA, age 78
years 1 month 5 days.
From NDGW
George THRUSH born PA 1829, came to CA in 1852 overland via Oregon, lived in
Missouri, Ohio.
Lived in San Joaquin Co. near Lodi 1862, Modesto, Stockton, Waterloo
A farmer
Married Elizabeth EBELING in MO
Children: Mrs. Fannie BACON, Linden
Mrs. Ellen KINCADE, Los Angeles
Mrs. Alice FOREMAN, Oakland
Mrs. Louis HANCOCK, Stockton
William H. THRUSH, Stockton
Mrs. Marion BOUHAM, Stockton
Mrs. Dora BRIENLY, Oakland
Mrs. Edith LEFFLER, Stockton
Miss Ollie THRUSH
From History of Solano and Napa County p997
JULIUS DODINI.
In the list of resourceful farmers of high standing in Solano County we
mention the name of Julius Dodini, well known as a leading agriculturist of
the northern locality. By birth and ancestry he is of the Swiss race. In a
humble home in the little republic nestling at the foot of the Alps he was
born in February of 1872, and there he learned life's early lessons of
frugality, thrift and industry. When only fifteen years of age he sought
the larger opportunities of the new world and since then has been identified
with the landed interests of Solano County.
Upon reaching San Francisco in 1887 Mr. Dodini came at once from that city
to the Suisun valley and here he worked as a farm hand for three years.
With the earnings of that period he embarked in farming for himself and
leased a tract of land, on which he engaged in dairying. To his country
home in 1895 he brought his bride, who was Miss Mattie Jullieri, a native of
Switzerland. Six children bless their union namely: Arthur J., Florentine
A., Anna S., Alice G., Agnes N. and Ida Josephine. The parents are
solicitous to give their children every advantage their means render
possible in order that they may be prepared for whatever responsibilities
await them in the future.
Though the exercise of rigid economy Mr. Dodini was enabled to buy a tract
of three hundred and twenty acres about nine miles northwest of Suisun.
Fruit is now an important part of the farm products there being eighteen
acres in apricots, eight acres in figs and nine acres in cherries. In 1907
he purchased three hundred and twenty acres more located four miles west of
Dixon, on which he now lives engaged in dairying and farming. Sixty-five
acres are in alfalfa, besides grain and pasture land. One hundred and sixty
head of cattle are kept on the farm, over one hundred of these being dairy
cows, the income from which averaged about $40 per head during the year
1910. Forty head of horses amid mules also are kept on the land, many of
these being young stock. There are also about eighty head of hogs kept on
the place. The alfalfa yields about seven tons to the acre, and is one of
the most profitable crops that can be raised on the land, furnishing the
most healthful of hay for the stock.
Mr. Dodini is a Republican. Since 1911 he has served as school trustee of
his district and for five years he was school trustee for the island
district. Fraternally he holds membership with the Independent Order of Odd
Fellows and the Improved Order of Red Men, being an interested worker in the
camp and lodge at Dixon. While living in his native land and as yet a mere
boy he became a member of the Roman Catholic Church and his interest in that
organization has never diminished.
From History of Southern Coast Counties vol 1 p 1119
AUGUST ALBERT GOETTING. A liberal, enterprising citizen. August Albert
Goetting is prominent among the upbuilders of Riverside and San Bernardino
counties, having been engaged as an agriculturist in this section since
1891. He was born in Gallipolis. Gallia county, Ohio, March 2, 1862, the
third in a family of six sons and three daughters born to his parents,
August and Fredericka (Hess) Goetting. They were both natives of Germany,
where they were married, immigrating to America when Mr. Goetting was but
twenty-tour years old. Locating in Ohio, he cleared and improved a hundred
and sixty-acre farm on which he and his wife are now living, he being
seventy-five and she seventy-three years old. In religion they are members
of the Lutheran Church.
August Albert Goetting was the eldest son in the family and was reared on
the paternal farm in Ohio, receiving his education in the public schools.
He remained at home until attaining his majority, when he went to Franklin
county and secured employment on a farm, as that was the work in which he
had early been trained. In 1889 he came to California and in Los Angeles
entered the employ of the Southern Pacific Railroad Company, as a carpenter
in the bridge and building department. He was located between Fresno and
Reno, Nev., for two years, when he returned to Southern California and in
San Timoteo canon, near El Casco, established an apiary. This enterprise he
continued successfully until 1895, when he rented the old C. W. Gower place
and continued the management of an apiary and general farming. In October
1906, he purchased his present farm, which consists of one hundred and sixty
acres, well improved and highly cultivated, general farming and an apiary of
two hundred stands occupying his attention. He has been very successful in
his work and is esteemed among the farmers of this section both for his
ability as an agriculturist, as well as personal qualities of character, his
liberality and enterprise placing him high in the citizenship of El Casco.
August 14, 1898, Mr. Goetting was married to Miss Annie J. Singleton, a
native of this section and a daughter of William Singleton. In his fraternal
relations Mr. Goetting is a member of the Odd Fellows lodge of Redlands and
politically he is a stanch adherent of Democratic principles. He is a
member of the California Bee Keepers' Association, in which be takes an
active and helpful interest.
From History of CA and Southern Coast V2 page 2253
J. J. LASWELL. As an industrious, enterprising and progressive man, J. J.
Lasswell has for a number of years been actively identified with the leading
interests of San Luis Rey, and is a worthy representative of its skill and
prosperous agriculturists. A son of the late Uriah Laswell, he was born,
June 25, 1862, in Rockcastle County, Ky., where he was reared and educated.
A native of Kentucky, Uriah Laswell was born March 24, 1833. A farmer from
choice, he was engaged in agricultural pursuits in his native state for many
years, accumulating some money. Migrating then to Missouri, he purchased
two hundred and twenty acres of land on the Platte River, and by means of
energetic toil and wise management improved a valuable ranch, on which he
resided until his death, in 1909. A man of strong personality, he obtained a
position of influence in his Missouri home, becoming one of the leading
Democrats of the place, and serving for some time as county clerk.
Fraternally he was a Mason and both he and his wife were members of the
Baptist Church, with which they united when young. His wife, whose maiden
name was Caroline French, spent her entire life in Kentucky, dying at a
comparatively early age. Of the eight children born of their union, seven
are living, one son, besides J. J., being a resident of California.
Having completed his early education in the common schools of Kentucky, J.
J. Laswell assisted his father in the care of the home ranch, obtaining a
practical knowledge of general farming and horse breeding and raising.
Leaving the parental roof when twenty years of age, he came to California in
search of riches, and for about eight years worked in the silver mines of
San Bernardino county. Locating in the San Luis Rey valley about 1890, he
first purchased one hundred and sixty acres of land at Vista, and having
improved it subsequently disposed of it at an advantage. Purchasing then a
ranch at San Luis Rey, he devoted his time and energies to its improvement,
and in course of time had a large part of its one hundred and twenty-eight
acres in a tillable condition, and in addition to raising corn and alfalfa
became one of the leading dairymen of this section of the valley, keeping
about thirty cows. In 1906 Mr. Laswell sold this property, and moved to
Chino, San Bernardino County, where he purchased an alfalfa ranch.
October 13, 1888, Mr. Laswell married Catherine Hughes, who was born in
Wales, and came to California with her parents in 1887. Her father, Dana
Hughes, died in California, but her mother is still living. Of the marriage
of Mr. and Mrs. Laswell six children were born. Politically Mr. Laswell is
an adherent of the Democratic Party, and fraternally he belongs to the
Independent Order of Odd Fellows. Religiously both Mr. and Mrs. Laswell are
consistent and valued members of the Baptist Church.
From History of CA and Southern Coast Vol 1 page 1605
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN LASSWELL. A successful ranchman, B. F. Lasswell is located
three-quarters bf a mile west of Compton, Los Angeles County, where on his
twenty-acre ranch he is extensively engaged in the raising of a1falfa and
the prosecution of his dairy interests. He is a native of the middle west,
his birth having occurred in the southern part of Illinois, February 7,
1844, he being a son of the late Isaac Lasswell, a native of Virginia, who
removed to the Prairie state and engaged in farming for a livelihood. The
father made his home in Illinois for many years, engaging prominently in
public affairs, and as a Democrat was elected to the office of sheriff,
where he ably discharged the duties incumbent upon him. After the death of
his wife, formerly Anna Norton, also a native of Virginia, he came to
California and followed ranching pursuits in Lincoln, Placer County, until
his death. He was a Mason, and in religion belonged to the Baptist church.
B. F. Lasswell remained a member of the parental family until attaining his
majority, receiving his education through an attendance of the common school
in the vicinity of his home, and also engaging with his father in general
farming in Hamilton County. He finally engaged independently in the work
renting land in his native state until 1868, in which year he was married
and came to California. He first located in Marysyille, Yuba county, where
he remained for a short time, when he became a rancher in Ventura county and
followed these pursuits for nine or ten years coming to Compton at the close
of that period he purchased his present property, consisting of thirty-two
acres, holding the same in his possession until about one year ago, when he
disposed of twelve acres. The balance of the property is devoted to the
raising of alfalfa and dairy purposes. He is an esteemed citizen of this
community, where he takes a helpful interest in public affairs.
Mrs. Lasswell was formerly Anna Flynn, a native of Ireland, whose parents
brought her to America during her childhood. They located in the east and
spent the balance of their lives in Boston, Mass. About six years ago Mrs.
Lasswell suffered a paralytic stroke, which has seriously affected her
health. Mr. and Mrs. Lasswell belong to the Catholic Church and politically
Mr. Lasswell is a stanch adherent of the principles advocated in the
platform of the Democratic party.
From the History of Harbor District of Los Angeles page 607
CORTIS R. BARTELL
As a carpenter and boat builder Cortis R. Bartell is well known in San Pedro
and about the Harbor District. In 1920 he identified himself with the
organization of the H-b Water Taxi Company of San Pedro, and since that time
has run a boat about the harbor. He was born in Fort Worth, Texas, June 12,
1882, and was a son of F.M. and Belle (Henry) Bartell. The father was a
rancher near Colorado City, Texas, well known and prominent in his
neighborhood. It was in the grade schools of that city that the son received
his education. Shortly after leaving school he went to Roswell, New Mexico,
and found work as a carpenter.
In 1902 Mr. Bartell came to San Pedro and entered the employ of Hardeson &
Carse, boat builders in East San Pedro, and remained with that company for
three years. Following this he worked for L. Larson as a boat builder in
East San Pedro and continued at that business for six years. Seeing
possibilities in the fishing business, he built for himself a fishing boat
and during the seven years that followed was in business for himself as a
fisherman. In 1920 he became identified with the H-10 Water Taxi Company.
Mr. Bartell was married in San Francisco in 1925 to Miss Sadie Cornell, a
native of Michigan. Mr. Bartell has no political affiliations but states
that he is interested in the progress of his community and will vote for the
right man regardless of his party. He owns his own home in San Pedro and
spends a great deal of his spare time hunting, fishing and touring. The
Harbor District is, in his opinion, the ideal community for prosperity.
From the History of Harbor District of Los Angeles page 726
ERNEST W. BARTELL
One of the most unique business organizations in San Pedro is the H-10 Water
Taxi Company which was formed in 1922 by Ernest W. Bartell, present
treasurer of this company, and four partners. This is the only business of
its kind in the world. The company controls seventeen boats carrying from
fifty to sixty passengers each, three of which are operated and owned by Mr.
Bartell, and run to the fleet and other vessels anchored off shore. The
boats are available at any time during the day or night and engage in a
general taxi business on water. At the time the company was organized Mr.
Bartell started with an old fishing boat but he succeeded in organizing a
company consisting of those who were operating small passenger carrying
boats at that time and secured a franchise from the city for the H-10 Water
Taxi Company. The three boats which he now owns and operates were
constructed especially for passenger service and the company is in a
flourishing condition. Upon its organization shares sold for one dollar,
issued in blocks of forty, but blocks of shares in 1927 were sold for four
thousand dollars. In 1926 about half a million people were carried with no
injury to any.
Mr. Bartell was born in Texas, October 1, 1889, a son of F. M. and Belle
(Henry) Bartell. The father was a contractor and rancher of the Lone Star
state and, after receiving a grade school education; the son was a cowboy
for a time. He came to San Pedro in 1902 and helped to paint the San Pedro
Bank building. After one year devoted to painting he found work at
longshoring and fishing and operated his own fishing boat for about eleven
years. Since organizing the H-b Water Taxi Company in 1922 he has devoted
all of his time to the conduct of that business.
In 1918 Mr. Bartell was married in San Pedro to Mrs. Gladys Anderson, a
native of Iowa, and a daughter of J. 0. Vail. By her first marriage there is
a son, Edward Anderson. Mr. Bartell is a democrat in politics. He is fond of
hunting, fishing, touring and camping.
History of Monterey and San Benito Counties 1910 Vol 2 page 347
JOHN NEWLOVE.
The twenty-five years covering the period of John Newlove's residence in
California represented an era of great activity on his part, resulting in
the' accumulation of large landed tracts and extensive stock interests and
resulting as well in the attainment of an honored position as an upright
man, generous friend, accommodating neighbor and sagacious citizen. The
welfare and progress of his adopted home were ever near his heart, then
people began to purchase lands in greater numbers, when values rose in
proportion, and when villages developed into important cities, he felt that
his early predictions had been fulfilled and that the great west was coming
into its own heritage. The climate of the coast country he always held to
be unrivalled. His own early experiences had familiarized him with the fogs
of England and later with the rigors of Canadian winters; hence he was amply
qualified to appreciate the mild and sunny climate of the west.
Born in Lincolnshire, England, May 29, 1832, John Newlove was only fourteen
years of age when he crossed the ocean and settled in the vicinity of
Toronto, Canada. Here some years later he was joined by a brother and two
sisters. He had a thirst for knowledge, but was able to secure only a
limited schooling; however, he was a great reader and improved his time when
he was not engaged in work in reading good books and in this way lie made of
himself a well-educated man. After he arrived in Canada he found employment
on a farm and worked for wages until lie was married, and after that he
rented land and was engaged independently until he came to California. He
had become dissatisfied with the long and severe Canadian winters and
(luring 1864 he came to California by way of the Isthmus of Panama. His
first location in the state was near Linden, San Joaquin County, on land he
leased, and here he tried ranching until 1867, when he came to Monterey
county and leased land near Santa Rita, that was owned by a Mr. Soto. This
included large acreage suitable for grain and he accordingly gave his
attention to raising wheat and barley on this place for three years. He
then moved to the Graves ranch and continued with success for three years
more. In 1873 he moved to San Luis Obispo County, settling near the town of
that name, and there he devoted the greater part of his time to stock
raising, meeting with good success in this line.
The last removal made by Mr. Newlove was in 1881, when he took tip his home
in the Santa Maria valley, Santa Barbara county, and there he bought a large
tract of land and improved it, making it one of the most valuable in the
section and this later became one of the most valuable tracts in the state,
as here oil has been developed iii large quantities. He lived on this place
until his death, in 18S0, when he passed away amid the scenes of his labors
and was recognized as one of the leading men in the county, one whose word
was as good as his bond and who had been liberal and just to all with whom
he came in contact, either in business or socially. When it is considered
that he came to the state without means and that in twenty-five years he had
accumulated a competency and reared a large family, it will be conceded that
he was a man of ability and resource. During his residence in the various
places in the state he was always in favor of good schools and served as
trustee for many years to maintain competent teachers. Other movements for
the general upbuilding of the state found in him a hearty coworker.
December 15, 1860, in Canada, John Newlove and Miss Maria Beynon were united
in marriage. She was born, reared and educated in Canada and after four
years they came to California, where Mrs. Newlove has since resided and now
makes her home in Pacific Grove, surrounded by her children, whom it has
been her ambition to fit for positions of trust and responsibility. The
family comprises the following children: Sarah J., who became the wife of H.
W. Head, the family residing in Pacific Grove; Charles W., also a resident
of that city; Frank H., residing on a ranch at Rio Grande; Henrietta L., the
wife of R. F. Martin, of Santa Maria; Ida A., who became the wife of F. C.
Twitchell and lives in Orcutt; Walter I., of Pacific Grove; Ernest A., of
Santa Maria; and Percy E., of Santa Cruz. Wilbur W. died at the age of
twenty-four years and two children died in early childhood. The sons in
their several fields of labor are following the example set by their father
and inherit his sterling qualities and like him are willing to do their
share to advance local interests.
History of Santa Cruz, San Benito, Monterey and San Luis Obispo vol 2, page 277
PROF. CHARLES C. HILL
The principal of the high school at Salinas is the representative of an old
Massachusetts family, and was born in Dundee, Ill., in 1870. His father,
Rev. D. D. Hill, is one of the well-known Congregational ministers on the
coast and was pastor of the church of that denomination which he erected at
Pasadena. He was a courageous soldier in the Civil war and participated in
most of the important battles as a volunteer in the 'Fifth Wisconsin
Cavalry. Of the two children born into his family, Edith L. is a graduate of
the Leland university, and, and like her brother is engaged in educational
work. Mrs. Hill was formerly Louise Rau.
The education of Professor Hill was acquired in the public schools of
Illinois, and a preparatory school in Beloit, Wis., whither his father had
in the meantime removed. He came to Los Angeles, Cal., in 1888, and was
graduated from the Los Angeles Normal in 1890, and from the Stanford
University in 1895. Thus equipped, he taught in the schools of Los Angeles
and Southern California for a time, and seven years ago came to Salinas
where, for four years he was assistant of the high school. For the last
three year he has been principal of the high school, an institution
acknowledged to be one of the best in the state, considering the size of the
town. Mr. Hill is singularly adapted to his chosen work, and is one of the
foremost educators in this part of California. His theories as to
educational training are in accord with the methods adopted in the most
advanced centers of learning, or are perhaps more wisely conceived by the
light of his own particular environment and individual experience. The
influence of a strong and genial personality has been an important factor in
the accomplishment of his success, and a pronounced sincerity and sympathy,
without which the efforts of the cultivated master, however great, were
vain.
In 1891, Professor Hill was united in marriage with Mattie A. Williams,
daughter of Matthew Williams, one of the earliest and most prominent farmers
and stock-raisers in Monterey County.
Illustrated History of Southern CA page 880
C. F. MANSUR, cashier of the Orange County Savings, Loan and Trust Company
at Santa Ana, was born in Barnston, Ontario, Canada, July 8 1840. At the
age of fourteen years he came to the United States and located at Randolph,
Wisconsin, upon a farm. During the war he enlisted in the Eighth Wisconsin
Volunteer Infantry, better known as the "Live Eagle Regiment," because they
carried a live eagle through the war. After the war Mr. Mansur returned to
Wisconsin, followed farming two years, then was a merchant a year or two iii
Canada, and in 1867 came to California where he was engaged in the
mercantile business for ten years at Camptonville, during which time he was
postmaster also at that place. In 1878 he came to Santa Ana, where he has
since lived. He owns several fine fruit farms near the city, and other
valuable property. For several years he was a director in the Santa Ana
Valley Fruit Company, and made several trips to Chicago in its interests,
and is still its acting secretary. April 8, 1889, he organized the company
of which he is now the cashier, and August 1 opened for business. Capital
$100,000. Officers: Carey B. Smith, President; I. N. Rafferty,
Vice-president; C. F. Mansur, Cashier. This company, though in its infancy,
shows that it is destined to be one of the leading enterprises in the
enterprising city of Santa Ana.
Mr. Mansur was married in Wisconsin, in 1861, to Miss C. L. Gale, from
Vermont, just before he entered the service of his country. They have
brought lip a family of six children, the eldest of whom is now a merchant
in Chicago.
Illustrated History of Southern CA page 328
ISRAEL METZ.-Just to the east of the rail-road, one mile north of Perris, is
a 160-acre ranch without a stump or stone on the whole property. This is
the ranch and home of Mr. Israel Metz. He settled on the then wild
Government land September 29, 1884, and made the adobe brick and built a
very comfortable home, and planted his grounds to trees, shrubs and flowers.
Mr. Metz is a native of Chester County, Pennsylvania, and was born November
12, 1831. His grandfather, John Metz, was a native of Germany, but settled
in Pennsylvania, where his son, Israel Metz's father, was born, raised and
married to Miss Anna Doan in 1830. They had a family of eleven, of which Mr.
Metz was the eldest. When quite young his parents removed to Iowa, where he
received his education. He learned the cooper's trade before he became of
age, and worked at it about three years, and has worked at it, more or less,
all his life. Lie farmed in Iowa for five years, and came to California in
1855. He has resided in Santa Clara and San Joaquin counties, and lived
within seven miles of Stockton for twelve years, on a farm which he owned.
He was in San Benito County four years. Then he went to Sonoma County, then
to Tehama, and then to Shasta. While at the latter place he got the chills
and fever, and came south to San Diego County in 1884, and settled in his
present home. He has been a resident of California for thirty-four years,
and has seen much of pioneer life when there were but few settlers; no
railroads, and few of the privileges or enjoyments of civilization. He was
married March 15, 1853, to Miss Margaret Wiley, who was born in Tippecanoe
County, Indiana, November 24, 1832. She was a daughter of Mr. James Wiley,
a native of VA, born April 11, 1802. They have had five children: Amanda
Elizabeth, born in Santa Clara County, November 28, 1855; she is married to
Mr. La Fayette Flood, and their land adjoins her father's. Albert W., born
in San Joaquin County, December 17, 1857, and married to Miss Trulover;
their home is on the same section. Teressa Elnora, born in San Joaquin
County, September 16, 1859; Joseph Orlando, born in Los Angeles County,
February 8, 1870. Mrs. Metz is a member of the Christian Church. Mr. Metz
is a pleasant and sociable man and an excellent neighbor.
History of San Joaquin Valley page 1336
JAMES SHARPE TANNAHILL. Born in Huntingdon County, Quebec, Canada November
17, 1848, J. S. Tannahill is a son of John and Marian (Caldwell) Tannahill,
the former born near Glasgow, Scotland. At an early day he immigrated to
Canada, setting in Huntingdon County, where he cleared a farm of one hundred
and fifty acres. In 1850 he came to California via the Isthmus of Panama,
but after one year returned to his home in Canada, where he had left his
family, and where he died a few days afterward, from a fever that he had
contracted while in the west. His wife, who was also born in Scotland,
became the mother of two sons and five daughters. She died at the old home
in 1881.
James S. Tannahill was reared on his father's farm in Canada, making it his
home until reaching his twenty-first year, when he was apprenticed to learn
the trade of a miller. Two years later, in 1871, he migrated westward and
finally reached California. Soon after arriving here he located in Redwood
City, San Mateo county, where be secured employment as a carpenter after
conducting a mill for one month, being compelled to make the change on
account of ill health. Continuing to make his residence in Redwood City
until 1891, he then removed to Fresno County and engaged in ranching.
During the years he lived in San Mateo County he owned and operated a
planing mill and followed contracting and building and followed contracting
and building most of the time. Many of the finest residences in that place
and at Menlo Park were constructed by him.
The first three and one-half years of his residence in Fresno county Mr.
Tannahill devoted
his attention to farming and growing grapes, but at the expiration of that
time moved into the city of Fresno and has since been following general
contracting and building, now being one
of the leading builders in the San Joaquin Valley. Among the more prominent
residences that he has erected may be mentioned the Kearney mansion, the
home of James Brown and others. He has also erected for himself a nice home
at No. 442 Blackstone Avenue.
While living in San Mateo county Mr. Tannahill was united in marriage with
Isabelle Stewart and to them have been born seven children, namely: Marion,
Archibald. Leslie. Norman, Jennie and Gertrude. Politically Mr. Tannahill
is a stanch Republican and while he does not care to take an active part in
public affairs he is deeply interested in the questions of the day, and
while living in Redwood City was for three years a member of the city
council. In fraternal relations he holds membership with the Improved Order
of Red Men and the Order of St. Andrew. Starting at the bottom of the
ladder, he has gradually forged his wav to the front and by the exercise of
his own efforts has accumulated a comfortable competency and has attained a
position of influence in the state.
History of Solano and Napa Counties page 588
CAPT. ORRINGTON L. HENDERSON.
Associated with many avenues of development inaugurated and carried through
to successful completion in Solano county is the fine and noble life of the
late Capt. Orrington L. Henderson, who was born in Rangor. Me.. May 27,
1838, and who died in Vallejo, Cal., July 18,1903. Up to the age of twenty
years his life was associated with the rock-hound coast of his native state,
which he left at that time to try his luck in the mines of California. He
did not remain in the mines long, however, and later was variously employed
in San Francisco for two years.
The year 1860 marks the date of Captain Henderson's advent in Vallejo, when
the war cloud was hovering over the nation, and when disruption came he
joined the ranks and did his part in the defense of the Union with the
restoration of peace he settled down to the quiet pursuit of his calling of
carriage builder, and the shop which he maintained on Mann street for many
years attracted much of the best trade of the town and surrounding country.
In time the original quarters were outgrown on account of increased
business, and the removal of the shop to Capitol Street was timely and
advantageous, business being carried on at this location until ill health
forced Captain Henderson to retire. To an extent not enjoyed by many men
Captain Henderson had the faculty of making money rapidly, but money getting
was far from being his main object in life, as his many activities in
outside matters plainly indicate. He was a prominent member of the fire
department, believing that such public duty was due from every citizen, and
as chief of the department for many terms he rendered faithful service to
his fellow citizens. From early manhood he had been interested in military
affairs and his election to the captaincy of the Frishie Guard, a crack
military company was an honor of which he was justly proud.
Probably nowhere was Captain Henderson more genuinely welcomed than in
fraternal circles and his work in behalf of the various organizations with
A. M.; past eminent commander of Naval Commandery. K. T.; and past grand
commander of the Grand Commandery of California. Knights Templar. In the
Odd Fellows he was the prime mover in the organization of the first Canton
of the Patriarchs Militant, and as its captain drilled one team which won a
trophy in competition with teams from all parts of the state. Upon the
reorganization of the Canton he was again honored with the office of drill
master and gave the new members the elements of their military training. He
was also a member of the Red Men and the Grand Army of the Republic. In 1890
his fellow citizens elected him to the office of sheriff of Solano county,
and if any expression of their satisfaction was necessary, it was shown
beyond a doubt two years later when he was re-elected to the same office.
In 1895 he retired from public office and from that time until his death
confined his attention to his Private business.
The first marriage of Captain Henderson occurred in San Francisco, and
united him with Nettie Dunlap, and the three children born of this union are
all living Ethel, Mrs. Clark, of San Francisco; Mary, Mrs. Pedler, of
Oakland; and Edwin H., of Vallejo. His second marriage was celebrated in
1896 and united him with Eliza McWilliams, a native of Portland, Ore. The
widow cherishes two mementoes which bear silent testimony to the high regard
in which Captain Henderson was held by those with whom he was associated in
years gone by, a silver trumpet presented to him by the fire company and a
beautiful sword given to him by his military company. So versatile were his
accomplishments that it would be difficult to suggest a place that he could
not fill creditably, and with all his accomplishments he was still the
simple-hearted, approachable man, which is the mark of the true gentleman.
Historical and Biographical Record of Oakland Page 638
JOHN BAKEWELL
In 1891 the Episcopal Church located at the corner of Telegraph Avenue and
Twenty-ninth Street, Oakland, was built under the supervision of Rev. Dr.
John Bakewell, one of the most eminent religious divines of the Pacific
coast. Not only did he through thrift and energy raise the money to build
the church from many different sources, hut from his own means bought the
valuable lot and gave it as a present to the congregation. Upon the
completion of the building he became rector and aced in this capacity for
some years, without remuneration, until his resignation in 1903 in favor of
Rev. Clifton Macon. This church or mission was built at a cost of $9,000,
and when completed was absolutely free from indebtedness. Although resigned
from activity in the pulpit, Dr. Bakewell is still retained for service in
Trinity Parish, under the title of rector emeritus, and is now living
retired at his beautiful home on property adjoining the church at No. 1219
Telegraph Avenue.
Dr. Bakewell is a native of Pittsburg, Pa, horn in the year 1838, and in
that city his grandfather settled in the beginning of the last century. He
was an expert glass manufacturer and built the first glass manufacturing
plant west of the Alleghenies. Dr. Blackwell's parents were John P. and Ann
(Stevenson) Bakewell, the latter a native of England. Of their family of six
children John was the third son and fifth child in order of birth. John
Bakewell graduated from Trinity College at Hartford, Conn., after which he
went to Atchison, Kans., taking charge of a congregation there and building
the first Episcopal Church, completing it without any indebtedness being
left upon the property. In this connection it is well to mention that of all
the churches established and built by Dr. Bakewell none was ever completed
with a debt upon it. From Atchison Dr. Bakewell went to Topeka, there
rebuilding the church, and from there went to Trenton, N. J., where he also
rebuilt the church. The ill health of his wife induced him to come to
California, and in Santa Barbara he built a fine church, of which he had
charge until i888. In 1891 he came to Oakland, and of what he has
accomplished during the intervening years mention has already been made.
Dr. Bakewell has been twice married, his first wife being Maria Elizabeth,
daughter of Thomas Hubbard and Frances (Burling) Vail, her father being the
first bishop of Kansas. Born of this union were seven children, one of whom
died in infancy, and the others are as follows Harriet Burling; Ann; John,
Jr., an architect of San Francisco; Thomas Vail, an attorney; Benjamin, a
physician; and Walter B.
Dr. Bakewell's first wife died in 1883, at the age of forty-two years, and
he was later married to Harriet Winslow, a descendant of Governor Winslow,
the first governor of Massachusetts. Dr. Bakewell is a member of the I. K.
A. of Trinity College, Hartford, one of the oldest secret societies of
America, and in which he has held numerous offices. He is also a member of
the Phi Beta Kappa fraternity, and is a member of the standing committee of
the Diocese of California. From a personal viewpoint Dr. Bakewell is a man
who is winning and pleasing in his manner, genuine in his interest in the
numberless friendships which he forms, and is loved by all who know him,
honored for his personal characteristics, his business judgment, his stanch
integrity, and the unselfishness of the life he has lived for others.
History of Humboldt County page 1025
GEORGE F. WOODCOCK.-It is a noteworthy fact that the average pioneer is a
stronger man at an advanced age than is the product of a modern and more
complicated civilization, and one of the splendid evidences of this is
George F. Woodcock, of Rohnerville, who, although almost eighty years of
age, conducts a thrifty little ranch of some twenty odd acres between
Rohnerville and Fortuna, where he may be found hard at work every yin the
year. He is capable of doing as hard a day's work as a man half his years,
and is not in the least distressed thereby, rather enjoying the exhilaration
of the strenuous exercise. For more than half a century he has resided in
California, being variously engaged during that long and eventful period,
although for twenty-seven years he was in the employ of one company, being
one of their most trusted and trustworthy men.
Mr. Woodcock is a native of Charlotte county, New Brunswick, having been
born March 20, 1837. His father, David Woodcock, was a native of Maine, as
was his paternal grandfather, also David Woodcock. Both lived and died in
New Brunswick, although they were essentially American in their sympathies
and ideas. The father was married in New Brunswick to Miss Sarah Thomas, a
native of that province. He was a shoemaker by trade, the grandfather being
a carpenter, and both were industrious and prosperous, although neither ever
accumulated riches. There were nine children in the family of David
Woodcock, six boys and three girls, George F., the subject of this sketch,
being the eighth child. The eldest member of the family was a daughter, Ann
Woodcock, who later married Elias Smith and is living in New Brunswick at
the age of almost ninety years. One of the brothers, James Woodcock, was a
teamster and bridge builder in Humboldt County, for many years, where he
died. George F. Woodcock received very few educational advantages, there
being opportunity for attending school only a few brief months in the
winter. He began work as a lumberman when a boy in his native province and
became at an early age inured to hardship and severe manual labor. He came
to California by way of the Isthmus of Panama, going at once into the gold
mines on the American river in Placer County, arriving there the latter part
of September 1859. Times were then very hard and he secured the necessary
outfit for the wood chopper, laid in a simple supply of food and "batched"
while he chopped wood, receiving in wages $4 per day. Later he engaged in
gold mining, but did not find that the returns were satisfactory, and so
gave that up. He tried to enlist in the Civil war, but was unable to get
into the company that he desired, and so went north into Humboldt County,
going to Eureka, where he went to work in the lumber woods. He was employed
by the D. R. Jones Company and for twenty-seven years remained with them,
during the last fifteen years of that time being in charge of their outside
work, and much of the time running three teams and one hundred twenty men.
He was married in Eureka, in 1880, to Miss Mary Wilson, the daughter of Eli
G. Wilson, a stonemason by trade, a minister in the United Brethren Church,
and well known in Eureka. Three years after his marriage Mr. Woodcock
determined to engage in farming and so came to Rohnerville and purchased his
present home property three-quarters of a mile from town. Here he has
established a pleasant home and keeps the property under a high state of
cultivation through his own industrious application and splendid judgment.
Mr. and Mrs. Woodcock have become the parents of eleven children, all except
one of whom have grown to maturity. They are all well known in Humboldt
County, where they were horn and educated, and where they now make their
homes. They are all industrious' and prosperous, having inherited the
splendid traits of character that distinguish both their parents. They are:
Lillie, the wife of the late L. M. Nason, a school teacher, who died in
Eureka in 1914; George, a woodsman for the Eel River Valley Lumber Company:
Fred, residing at home; Frank, a teacher; Gladys, the wife of Ed Baxter, a
woodsman, and residing in Rohnerville; James, attending school in Eureka;
Percy, a teacher on the Klamath river; Clara, Blanche and Grace, residing at
home.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Woodcock are exceptionally interesting people and both are
interested in many things outside their immediate home. They are
particularly active in church work and are members of the Methodist
Episcopal church of Rohnerville, of which Mr. Woodcock is a trustee, while
Mrs. Woodcock is the superintendent of the Sunday school. Mr. Woodcock is a
Progessive in his political preferences and personally he is all that the
term implies, especially on questions of local import, and is always to be
found in support of any movement that tends for the religious, educational
or social betterment of the community. In his home life Mr. Woodcock has
been especially happy.
History of Humboldt County page 952
MRS. MARGARET SMITH COBB.-An author of note, and known among her literary
friends as "The Lady of the Hills" is Mrs. Margaret Smith Cobb, at present
residing on her ranch some four miles from Garberville, where she has made
her home for many years. Mrs. Cobb is a woman of rare ability and charm,
and her literary skill is of a superior order. She published a California
romance in 1913 which has had a wide circulation. It is ''Blaxine,
Half-breed Girl," a tale which, like Helen Hunt Jackson's "Ramona," deals
with the life of a beautiful half-breed girl.
This tale has received the favorable comment of the best critics and has
been especially praised by California writers, including Joaquin Miller and
Jack London, both of whom give it their unqualified approval, the former
having declared that "it is dearer to me than 'Ramona'," and adding that it
is ''the masculine to Helen Hunt's feminine.'' Mrs. Cobb has the manuscript
to several other novels which will appear within a limited time and she is
planning to publish a volume of her poems in 1915. These manuscripts were
ready for the publisher when the death of her husband occurred and so
disturbed the current of her life that for the last year she has given very
little time to her literary efforts.
Mrs. Cobb claims that her ability as a literary woman is simply a heritage.
Anyone blessed with the wonderful father and mother that were her own must
naturally and necessarily be a writer. She is the daughter of Thomas Smith,
a native of Michigan, a dreamer and frontiersman, and Donna Anna Zeparra, of
a titled family of Chile.
When but a boy, Mrs. Cobb's father was in the commission of the government,
moving the Pottawattamie Indians to the west of the Mississippi. This
awakened in him a love for the Indians, to understand something better in
their nature than savagery. In 1846 he crossed the plains to California, and
while on this trip there were the most friendly relations with the Sioux and
Comanches. Arriving in California, he enlisted under John C. Fremont and
served under him during the war with Mexico. He was working in the timber,
where Oakland now stands, when gold was discovered, and Aunt Jane Wymer, who
tested the gold in the kettle of soft soap, was an aunt by marriage.
Shortly after this he became associated with a party that made a trip
through the wilds of Trinity county. Redemeyer of Ukiah, Requa of Long
Valley and Jewett of Harris were members of this party. They found no gold
and the Indians were very troublesome, forcing them to make a stand against
them where Harris is now situated. It was on this trip that the dreamer and
adventurer first- saw Long Valley in Mendocino. He loved the beauty of the
high vale in the mountains and the next year, in 1852, returned to make his
selection of a home in the valley that had charmed him. Far up in this
wilderness he lived several years, building the log house that still stands
on the land and splitting out fencing from the virgin timber. In 1858 he
returned to San Jose for the wife he was to take away to share the wilds
with him.
Donna Anna Zeparra was a Chilean lady, a granddaughter of Don Juan de Lieva,
a well known figure in Chilean history and one of a lone line of Castilian
nobility. Donna Anna was a daughter of the rich and one of a family
intensely Catholic, nuns and priests following both sides of the family. The
de Lieva family owned a magnificent property in the Rincon Valley near
Valparaiso. Don Juan was a proud old Tory during the war for independence,
and would have been treated as one when the Chileans won their freedom, but
it was too widely known how he had opened his granaries to the poor of both
parties. In honor to this kindness, he was pardoned (an usual thing during
those cruel years) and made governor for life in that section where he
lived. The family had great pride in their title, their Castilian blood and
in their deeds toward the church. It was a grand-aunt of Donna Anna, Donna
Monecita, who founded the great Carmelite convent at San Felipe. Donna Anna
was left an orphan at six years, and her stories of her childhood, of
playing in the great garden where the red lilies grew as tall as her head,
or sitting at evening watching the flames belch forth from Mt. Aconcagua are
yet stories of wonder. In 1850 she was brought to California by her
god-father and god-mother and soon afterward entered Notre Dame convent at
San Jose to be a nun and teacher. She had determined to become a nun and had
taken the first vows when she met the man who was to be her husband, while
recovering from an illness at her godmother's. It was a case of true love at
first sight, the frail Spanish maiden loving the daring blond frontiersman.
They were married in a short time, Bishop Alameda officiating at the
ceremony. Then they set out for the wilds. The young husband drove a yoke
of cattle and carried with him three hundred fruit trees, ornamental trees
and rose cuttings, while the bride carried her great Spanish dictionary and
grammar and her finest embroidery and lace needles. Arriving at their home
the little wife embroidered and wrote Latin poems, when for months at a rime
her only companions were the Indian squaws who looked upon her as some rare
queen. When the first baby was born the second year after their arrival, it
possessed six long skirts embroidered their full length so heavily that one
could scarcely find the space to set a finger down on unembellished cloth.
Donna Anna became the mother of eight children, Mrs. Cobb being the sixth.
Mrs. Cobb's opportunities for schooling were very scanty, the dreamer-father
was never a maker of money, but the teaching of her mother was always her
aid. Listening to the wonderful stories that her father and mother could
tell was a natural advantage to her trend of literature. During her
childhood she read many of the classics, including all the works of
Shakespeare. At seventeen she began to write poems, but did nothing of
great merit until her twenty-seventh year. In that year her poem "The
Drowned Man's Song" was brought out by Ambrose Bierce in the San Francisco
Examiner with his praise. Ever after Pierce proved a friend to her in her
literary work.
Mrs. Cobb has not done a great amount of literary work; she has always had
to contend with ill health-but what she has done has been pronounced
exquisite. Mr. and Mrs. Jack London are warm personal friends of Mrs. Cobb
and it was Mr. London who presented her poem to the Century. This poem was
copied and recopied throughout the east with the following comment of Mr.
London: "The poem 'Unkissed' which is published in the September Century,
came to the Century through Jack London, who sent it with the following
comment 'I am sending you what I consider, under the circumstances, a most
remarkable poem. The writer, Margaret Smith Cobb, is a mountain woman, who
has lived all her life in the remotest mountain districts of California, far
beyond the reach of any railroad. The author's mother came from the west
coast of South America in 1849, so you can see that from the time of her
birth to the present moment, the writer has lived a most primitive life.
Yet this poem of hers has the control, the restraint, the simplicity and the
chastity that would mark the expression of an elder and old country
civilization, such as that of England.
Mrs. Cobb was born in San Jose, where she remained at the old Mission until
she was six years of age, when her parents removed again to their ranch at
the headwaters of the south fork of the Eel river. She met and married
Oliver C. Cobb a native of the state of Maine, born in l858.
He came to California and became the owner of a ranch of sixteen hundred
acres on the Eel River south of Garberville, where his widow now resides. He
was a member of a splendid family, and was a brother of Charles H. Cobb, of
Seattle, Wash., millionaire real estate and mill owner of that place. His
death occurred in Oakland. May 16,1914. Mrs. Cobb is the mother of two
children, Lillian, the wife of Samuel McCash, a native of California, who
now rents and operates the Cobb ranch, and Yvonne, aged eleven years.
Mrs. Cobb lives a busy life, but she finds time to devote to her literary
work. Among her unpublished works are two novels, the "Gold Squaw ' and "Gad
Wright," both of which will appear shortly. Mr. and Mrs. Jack London are
warm personal friends of Mrs. Cobb and have been entertained by her at her
ranch home. Mr. London is an eager admirer of her work. George Sterling is
also another admirer of her poems, characterizing her lines as "exquisite."
As a means of diversion, and as an outlet and satisfaction for her artistic
imagination, Mrs. Cobb also does landscape painting, and has produced some
very creditable canvases, both in water colors and in oils. She also makes a
rare and beautiful grade of Spanish point lace, an accomplishment which she
learned from her talented mother.
It is also a noteworthy fact that with her splendid artistic and literary
ability Mrs. Cobb yet possesses a business ability and power of sane and
safe judgment that is unusual. She understands the conduct of her business
interests and keeps in close touch with all the details of her properties.
She is well informed on all questions of public interest and is progressive
and modern in her appreciation of public needs. She has never taken an
active part in the suffrage movement, but is an advocate of freedom and
fuller life for women and fully appreciates the advantages that have been
accorded to the sex in California.
History of Sacramento County CA page 720
CHARLES TRAVER.--Among those who, coming to California in the early days,
have amassed a fortune and become prominent as representative men in this
"the land of golden promise," the subject of this sketch ranks among the
most widely and favorably known. The story of his life carries with it a
lesson fully illustrating what may be accomplished, even tinder adverse
circumstances, by perseverance and well-directed energy. He was horn at
Cincinnati, Ohio, and was but a child when taken to South Bend, Indiana,
where he was raised in the family of a cousin, and worked in a brick yard,
receiving little or no rudimentary education. At the age of sixteen years he
ran away from home and found employment upon the river and elsewhere; thus
was in 1841,In 1844 His cousin, starting for Oregon, desired him to
accompany him but he decided to remain in South Bend, and was there united
in marriage to Miss Dillie Day, a daughter of Captain Lot Day, a farmer. As
he grew up he became acquainted with Charles Crocker (since noted), who came
from the same place. South Bend, and they were friends prior to coming tog
California, as well as since. In 1850, in company with his wife amid a
party made up at South Bend, he started out for California overland.
Schuyler Colfax, afterward Vice-President of the United States, being then a
warm personal friend, made them a farewell speech as they started on the
then long journey. Their train, consisting of thirty-two ox teams made
quite an imposing array. On this, his first across the plains (be has made
three altogether), Mr. Traver walked every step of the way and carried his
rifle on his shoulders. Crossing the Missouri River at Council Bluffs, the
party proceeded up on the north side of the Platte, to Salt Lake, and by way
of Goose Creek, the head of the Humboldt, etc., to Hangtown, arriving August
12, having been something over four months on the road. During the
following year (1851), his father-in-law, Captain Day, came across the
plains and settled at Stockton, San Joaquin County, where Mr. Traver and
wife joined him.
Remaining there till the fall of that year, they went to the Cosumnes and
rented the Slough House, which had been kept by Daley & Sheldon. Daley had
died in the fall of 1850, of cholera, and Sheldon, a man of irascible
temper, had made himself unpopular and was shot during the following spring.
Mr. Traver kept the Slough House till the winter of 1853, when he crossed
over into Yolo County and took up a homestead, where for fourteen years he
made his home, until he took up his residence permanently in the Capital
City. Mr. Traver was one of the first in the State to raise grain. In 1852
he paid sixteen cents a pound for seed barley, sowed it, cut it all himself
with a cradle, and hired Indians to rake amid bind it, and in thus primitive
and laborious manner secured the first crop. When in 1860, upon the
completion of the Masonic Temple, the county court-rooms were removed from
the building at the corner of Ninth and K streets to that edifice, Mr. Toll
remodeled his building and fitted it up as a hotel, and in doing so became
involved.
The property came into the possession of L. M. Curtis and Mr. Traver, and
after the floods of 1861-'62, when the water stood on the first floor of the
building as high as the bar, they refitted and refurnished it for one Judy,
who kept it for a time. It was afterward kept by James Shoemaker for two
years. Curtis & Traver then bought the lot, forty feet on K street and 120
feet on Seventh, making altogether 100 x 120 feet. In 1868 the entire
building was remodeled, and has since been known as the Capitol Hotel, one
of the finest in the city. When in 1864 Mr. Traver moved in from the ranch
he did so in order to take charge of the hotel, but he soon leased the
property to Mr. Day, a brother-in-law, who ran the house until he was
succeeded a few years hater by Messrs. Blessing & Guthrie, the present
proprietors. Of the later enterprises which have engaged the attention of
Mr. Traver, the "Seventy-six Land and Water Company" of Fresno County, and
building of the town of Traver on the Southern Pacific road must receive at
least a passing notice.
Having purchased a large tract of land in Fresno County, midway between the
city of Fresno and Tulare, he conceived the idea of bringing the water of
King's River, thirty-two miles distant for purposes of irrigation, and a
ditch 100 feet wide at the bottom was constructed and proved a perfect
success. In 1884 the town of Traver was laid out, a stadium and other
buildings erected, amid at the first day's sale of town lots in April 1 that
year $27,000 was realized; and such was the rapid development of this
section, due to time abundant supply of water, that in 1885 more wheat was
shipped from Traver station than from any other point on the Southern
Pacific Railroad. Mr. Traver has been a Freemason since 1849, being a
charter member of Castwell Lodge, of Southern Bend, Indiana, and an Odd
Fellow since 1886, being a member of Eureka Lodge, No. 4, and of Encampment
No. 2, of this city. Such in brief is the outline of the history of one of
Sacramento's most successful and honored citizens, who began life without a
dollar, and who arrived on this coast forty years ago without a business
acquaintance or a friend; yet such has been the success of his life that it
is with pleasure that we accord to him a prominent place in this historic
volume of a county with which he has been so closely identified for so many
years.
History of Sonoma County page 977
WILLIAM D. JONES.
Legion were the caravans that wended their tedious wav over the lonely
plains and across the trackless deserts during the years that followed the
discovery of gold in California. Not the smallest or least important among
them was the emigrant train commanded by Captain Sewell, who led a large
company safely into the land of destiny and brought the journey to an
uneventful conclusion at the expiration of six months of constant travel.
Among the travelers was William D. Jones, who was born in Kentucky in 1842
and who at the time of the expedition was a boy of ten years. Always ready
to assist in the care of the wagons or the oxen, on more than one occasion
he proved himself the possessor of patience in hardship and heroism in
danger. Arriving in California during the autumn of 1852, he came with the
family to Sonoma County in 1853, and here passed the remainder of his useful
existence, earning a livelihood through the careful tilling of die soil. To
the end of his life he retained a vivid recollection of the trip across the
plains, and often referred to it during advanced years, dwelling especially
upon the contrast between modes of travel then and now.
The founder of the family in California was Robert W. Jones, a native of
Kentucky, born in 1782, and deceased in Mendocino county, Cal., when about
one hundred years of age. By his marriage to Margaret March, who was born
in Kentucky in 1816, he became the father of five children, William, Eli,
Mary, Elizabeth and Susan.
Eli, a resident of Potter Valley, Mendocino County, is married and has three
children, Walter, Leroy and Lena. Leroy married Agnes Berryhill and they
have two children, Leroy and Agnes.
Lena, Mrs. Charles Whittaker, of Potter Valley, has one son, Charles.
Mary, the eldest daughter of Robert W. Jones, became the wife of George
Pickle, and nine children were born of their union, namely: William, Jesse,
George, Frank, Margaret, Mattie, Della, Ellen and Josie.
The first-named son, William, married Lulu Jackson, by whom he has five
children, Samuel, Robert, Ella, Bessie and Georgia.
Jesse, who chose as his wife Miss Julia Jackson, resides at Potter Valley,
and has four children, Henry, Cecil, Laura and an infant unnamed.
Mattie Pickle married Fisher Day of Potter Valley, and they have six
children, Grover, Marion, Ralph, Ruth, Stella and an infant unnamed.
Della Pickle became the wife of Warner Neil, of Potter Valley, and they have
five children, George, Francis, Ora, Edith and Ruth.
Ellen Pickle married Edward Shelton, of Rock Tree Valley, and they have
three children, the two elder being Harold and Marion.
Elizabeth, daughter of Robert W. Jones, became the wife of John Pickle.
Their twelve children were named as follows: Wiley, George, John, Frederick,
Hattie, Nannie, Mamie, Elizabeth, Effie, Susan, Dovey and Mabel.
Wiley married Emma Maze, and they, with their three children reside at
Potter Valley. George is married and has two children, Ray and Jennie.
Hattie, Mrs. Barnard Berger, of Coalinga, Fresno County, has three children,
Hattie, Frank and Anna. Nannie is married and has four children, Johnson,
Minnie, Mary and Lulu Mamie, Mrs. Jerome Worth, of Coalinga, Cal., has two
children.
Elizabeth, Mrs. Edward Banker, is the mother of two children. Effie married
Frank Banker and has three children.
Susan is the wife of Samuel Spears, of Ukiah, this state, and they have two
children, Innis and Ruby.
Dovey married James Guinn and has three children, Wilbur, Dorothy and Erma,
Mabel, Mrs. Frank McKee, resides at Potter Valley and has one child,
Blanche. Susan, the youngest daughter of Robert W. Jones, became the wife of
D. Taylor and settled at Upper-lake, Lake County, Cal. Their family
comprised eight children, Leonard, Jessie. George, Charles, Ernest,
Josephine, Ellen and Alice.
The establishment of domestic ties by William D. Jones united him in
marriage with Mrs. Laura (Berryhill) Adams, who was born in Linn county Iowa
in 1852, and who was his faithful companion and capable helpmate until he
passed away, August 13, 1910. She was the daughter of Joseph T. and Jane
(Butler) Berryhill natives of Ohio, who subsequently settled in Iowa, and
still later in Dade County, Mo., where the mother died. Later the father
came to California and now resides in Potter valley, at the age of
eighty-eight years. Five children were born of Mr. Jones' first marriage,
Robert, William, Hattie, Hester and Edna. The first-named, Robert, married
Sarah Ryan and resides in Rio Grande; their children are Albert, Ernest,
William and Myrtle. Hattie married George Berryhill, of Fort Bragg,
Mendocino County, and is the mother of seven children, Rhoda, Pearl, May,
Myrtle, Ruth, Hazel and Gladys.
Hester Jones is the wife of E. A. Preston of Garden Grove, Orange County,
and they have four children, Elmer, Mont, Alvin and Delbert. Edna Jones,
now the wife of Bert Hayes, makes her home at Garden Grove, and has two
children, Leta and Wilford.
By his second marriage Mr. Jones had two children, Cecelia, the wife of Carl
Nozler, of Healdsburg, and Clarence, at home. Mrs. Jones' first marriage
united her with Matt Adams of Missouri, by whom she had three children. The
eldest, Joseph Adams, married Clara Spencer, by whom he has three children,
Harold. Trilby and Alvin; they reside in Potter Valley.
Viola Adams, who became the wife of George Pickel of Potter Valley, died in
1910, leaving three children. Herbert, Littie and Earl. Alice Adams became
the wife of Richard Corvel of Fort Bragg, and they have two children, Meta
and Laura.
The old homestead in Sonoma County, where for so many years Mr. Jones lived
and labored, is now owned by his widow, who has shared with him the
good-will of neighbors and the regard of a large circle of acquaintances.
She maintains her membership in the Baptist Church, and for a long period he
served as' a deacon in the congregation, always contributing generously to
religious movements, and giving his sympathy to all uplifting enterprises.
His sons have been active in local ledge work in the Independent Order of
Odd Fellows, but his inclinations did not head him toward fraternal
organizations. His was a busy existence, and a modest degree of success
rewarded his exertions, but greater than his pride in material prosperity
was his devotion to his children, his sacrifices for their good and his
earnest hope of their well-being. Through his own labors he cleared ten
acres out of his homestead of forty acres; the balance of the estate
contains valuable redwood and oak timber. The place stands as a landmark of
his industry, a memorial to his pioneer labors. With it are associated
memories of his quiet perseverance, his long years of toil and his unselfish
interest in the welfare of the community and the county. In the local
annals his name is worthy of a position of honor and of permanence as that
of a resolute, patriotic and brave pioneer. In October 1910, after the
death of her husband and daughter. Mrs. Jones took up her residence in
Healdsburg, where she now lives.
History of San Joaquin County page 967
FREDERICK G. MENKING-For almost his entire lifetime, Frederick G. Menking
has been a resident of San Joaquin County, for lie was about three months
old when his parents brought him to California. He was born at Hoboken, N.
J., May 23, 1868, and in August of the same year his parents removed to
Stockton, Cal., coming via the Isthmus of Panama on the S. S. "Golden State"
to Aspinwall, then across the Isthmus on mule back, and there they took
passage to San Francisco on the S. S. "Arrow." The father (From NDGW -
Frederick Godfrey MENKING born December 26 1839 NY or Jersey City, NJ; died
1921 Stockton CA) purchased property from Captain Weber on Pilgrim Street
and Miner Slough, Stockton, where he erected a house; here he engaged in the
lumber and freighting business. He married Miss Katherine Tons, a native of
Germany and a sister of John Tons, and she passed away in 1917, while the
father died in San Francisco in 1921. (from CADI: Catherine W. Spouse F age
73, died in Stockton on Feb 5, 1917)
Frederick G. Menking received a fairly good education in the public schools
of Stockton and when a very small boy learned to handle horses successfully.
Thereby an intense love for this four-footed animal was created and
throughout his lifetime he has been known as an authority on horses. In the
fall of 1882 he became a driver for the Moore & Smith yards, and during all
the years he followed teaming he has worked for but three firms.
Of recent years he was employed by the city of Stockton. Two years ago he
retired to take up farming on account of poor health, and purchased fourteen
acres of the L. U. Shippee homestead rear French Camp. By hard work and a
determination to succeed he has made of his ranch a fine and productive
fruit and alfalfa farm; here he devotes much of his time to raising fine
horses, for which he is particularly well fitted.
The marriage of Mr. Menking united him with Miss Sadie Ray, a daughter of
David Ray, prominent building contractor of Stockton; and they are the
parents of two of children: Ada and Edna. In fraternal circles he is a
member of the I. O. O. F. and the W. O. W.
rom NDGW
Frederick Godfrey MENKING, Sr. was in the Navy 1863-1864 at San Francisco;
in the Army 1864-1866; was in the California gold mines; and a teamster in
the lumber industry.
He married Catherine TONS June 1867 in Hoboken NJ
Children: Frederick G. MENKING, George Henry MENKING (born Jan 1871 NY),
Alice MENKING SNYDER, Ada MENKING TAYLOR (born July 1881, Vallejo CA)
From obituary on Katherine W. MENKING, wife of Frederick MENKING, Sr. age 73
years, 6 months, 6 days. Native of Germany who came to this county as a
young girl. Children who survived: Mrs. A. SNYDER of San Andreas, Mrs. A.
TAYLOR, Harry and Frank MENKING, Jr. of Stockton.
History of San Joaquin County page 520
ROBERT L. GRAHAM. -Prominently identified with the development and progress
of modern California the late Robert L. Graham was one of the most prominent
and representative citizens of the Lodi section of San Joaquin County, where
his life was so ordered as to gain and retain the confidence and esteem of
his fellowmen. He was born December 16, 1855 on the old Graham homestead
southeast of Lodi, where the A. E. Angier home now stands, and was a son of
Robert L. Graham and his wife, Caroline Roe (Stokes) Graham, both natives of
Kentucky. The father was born December 27 1826, his parents being Levy and
Mary (Tatum) Graham, natives of North Carolina. The maternal
great-grandfather of our subject, Thomas Tatum, was a teamster in the
Revolutionary War. Grandfather Graham was a farmer by occupation and
emigrated from North Carolina to Kentucky with his father, when a small boy
remaining there owning laud until about 1860, when his wife died and he sold
out and went to Missouri there he remained but a short time, when he went to
Arkansas, where he died in 1881 at the age of eighty-six years.
The father remained at home with his parents until twenty-four years of age,
then February 22, 1852, he left for Missouri, where he remained for one
year, when he crossed the plain to California, arriving in San Joaquin
Valley September 2, 1853. In 1847 he was married to Miss Caroline Roe
Stokes, whose grandfather was a fifer in the Revolutionary War. Arriving in
San Joaquin County he purchased a claim of a man named Adams, situated nine
and a half miles from Stockton and five miles from what is now Lodi. He
sold the place in 1857 and went down to the Lower Sacramento Road, where he
purchased 200 acres where he had stock. He remained there until the fall of
1862, when on account of flood he came back and purchased again near the old
place. Not long afterwards, however, he traded that for 300 acres ten miles
from Stockton and five miles from Lodi on the Cherokee Lane Road. He was a
pioneer in agriculture, there being only three farms under plow before he
settled here. Four children were born to this worthy pioneer couple: Robert
L., our subject; Surelda; Mrs. A. M. Hale of Amador County; Della, Mrs. C.
Hull; Eugene D., the county clerk of San Joaquin County.
The first twenty-five years of Robert L. Graham's life was spent on his
father's farm. When he was twenty-six years old he came to Lodi and started
to work in a drug store owned by Byron Beckwith.
He; received his grammar school education at the little red schoolhouse of
Live Oak and was graduated from a college at Stockton, then passed the state
board examination and became a licensed pharmacist. At this time there were
only three business houses and a few dwelling in Lodi and much of the site
of the present city was covered with brush and scrub oaks. The first drug
store Mr. Graham owned was on Elm Street on the corner of Sacramento and at
this location he served as postmaster and postal telegraph and telephone
operator; later he moved his old store and built a brick structure.
Sacramento Street was at that time nothing more than a road through
the tangle of brush. Little business was done in those days, and Mr. Graham
often said that if he had five or six customers a day he thought he was
doing well. He was in business for forty-one years and was located on the
corner of Elm and Sacramento streets all of that period. The first long
distance telephone and the first telephone exchange in the town were placed
in his store; and he also had the first postal telegraph office, and after
learning the code, he sent, received and delivered all messages in Lodi for
a long time.
On June 22, 1856, occurred the marriage of Mr. Graham and Miss Sarah J.
Schu, a native of Missouri, a daughter of John Adam and Frances J. (Martin)
Schu. Her father was a native of Alsace-Lorraine, who came to the United
States when a young man, first settling in New York, later going to Illinois
and still later to Missouri. When Mrs. Graham was three years old her
parents came to California settling at Woodbridge, where they remained for
three years; from there the family removed to Gait where they lived for a
short time, then removed to Biggs where the father followed his trade of
shoemaker, then he followed his trade in Oroville; for a short time then
moved his family back to San Joaquin County where he passed away at the age
of sixty three the mother still living in Sacramento at the age of eighty.
There were seven children in the family: Josephine, John and Aggie are all
deceased; Sarah J., Mrs. Graham; Charles and Robert reside in Sacramento and
Etta is deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Graham were the parents of two daughters:
LaRelda Roe; Mrs. R. L. Patton, of Lodi, and Gladys Frances, Mrs. Oscar H.
Wood, of Lodi, has one daughter, Janis Maurine.
Mr. Graham was the owner of an eighty-five acre ranch in the Elliott
district of north San Joaquin County. For the past thirteen years a niece,
Miss Marion Schu, the daughter of Charles Schu, has made her home with Mr.
and Mrs. Graham. She attended the Lodi high school and is now employed by
the First National Bank of Lodi. Mr. Graham is a past grand of the Pythian
Sisters lodge of Lodi and is a member of the Eastern Star and the Rebekahs
and of the Lodi Woman's Club. Mr. Graham was enjoying his first vacation in
thirty-five years, in the Yosemite Valley where he was stricken and passed
away on June 20, 1922, before any assistance could be rendered him. He was
a charter member and past chancellor commander of the Lodi Knights of
Pythias, the Foresters of America, and was also a member of Lodi Parlor No.
18, N. S. G. W.
He was widely known in and esteemed and had many excellent traits of
character which endeared him to a large circle of friends and in his death
the community deplored the lose of an enterprising business man and honored
citizen who for many years had witnessed the community growth and had
contributed in no small way to its development and substantial upbuilding.
History of San Joaquin County p 923
EUGENE MYRLE GRAHAM-The family name of Graham is well-known throughout San
Joaquin County. The paternal grandfather of Eugene M. Graham was an early
settler here, and here the present efficient county clerk of San Joaquin
County, Eugene D. Graham, was born and reared, as were also Eugene M. Graham
of this sketch, and his two brothers, hereinafter mentioned, all prominent
in Stockton's professional, political and business circles. Grandfather
Robert L. Graham, who settled here in 1852, was a native of Kentucky, born
of Scotch lineage, while the maternal grandparents were of German descent.
Grandfather Graham left Kentucky with an emigrant train bound for California
in 1852, and upon arrival located upon a ranch near Lodi. Of his four
children, Eugene Douglas Graham, the father of Eugene Myrtle Graham, was the
youngest. He was born on his father's ranch north of Stockton in 1866, and
in 1888 was married to Miss Frances E. Mann, a native of Iowa, who had
accompanied her parents to California in 1869, being then a babe in arms.
Eugene Douglas Graham farmed for seven years after his marriage, or until
1895, when lie removed to Stockton to take up the duties of deputy county
clerk under Otto Grunsky. He continued in the office for five years, when
he resigned to engage in grain farming near Lodi. In 1902 he was nominated
on the Republican ticket and elected county clerk of San Joaquin County.
Since taking the oath of office in 1903 he has served continuously and
efficiently in that office, being held in high esteem by the citizens of the
county. Three sons have blessed the union of Mr. and Mrs. Graham: R.
Ellsworth, deputy county clerk in Department 2 San Joaquin County; Lloyd L.,
engaged in the grocery business in Stockton and Eugene Myrle.
Eugene Myrle Graham was born on September 13, 1896, at Stockton. His
preliminary education was obtained in the grammar and high schools of his
native city, and after graduating from high school in 1915, he entered the
College of Physicians and Surgeons in San Francisco, where he was graduated
with the class of 1918.
During the World War he served in the United States Navy Hospital Corps and
was sent overseas on the hospital ship Mercy. After the armistice was
signed he returned to his home in Stockton, where he began the practice of
his profession. He has won for himself an excellent position as a
representative of the dental fraternity. He is a thorough and
discriminating student, and his judgment is rarely at fault in matters
pertaining to his profession. Fraternally, he is a member and second
vice-president of Stockton Parlor No. 7, N. S. G. W., and a member of the
Delta Blue Lodge Masons. He is a member of the San Joaquin County Dental
Association. A man of broad learning and culture, possessing the
progressive spirit of the day, he has won an enviable place in the social
and professional circles of Stockton.
From NDGW
Eugene Douglas GRAHAM was born Jan 22 1866 in San Joaquin County, CA.
Held public office on County Council of Defense.
Educated Healds Business College, Stockton
Married Miss Francis E. MANN Sept 5 1888 in Modesto CA
His father was Robert L. GRAHAM; mother Caroline R. STOKES GRAHAM.
Children: R. Ellsworth, Loyd L. and Dr. E. Myrle GRAHAM
Submitted by Anna DRAIS, Stockton Parlor 255 NDGW
History of Sacramento County Page 762
JAMES JORDAN, owner of the Eagle Ditch at Michigan Bar, was born in England,
April 18, 1827, his parents being John and Louise (Brooker) Jordan. The
mother died about 1834, and in 1836 the father came to America with eight
children. He settled on a farm in the State of New York, and in 1840 moved
to Michigan, where six of his children are still living, five being married
They are: Caleb, with one son; Stephen married a Miss Perry, and has four or
five children; William is unmarried; Mary, now Mrs. William Loburn, has a
large family; Louise, now Mrs. Tyler, has some children: Annie, now Mrs.
Carpenter, is also the mother of some children. All are settled on farms in
Davison Township, Monroe County, Michigan The father died there about
1879, aged eighty-three. The grandparents Jordan and grandmother Brooker
were also long-lived folks.
The subject of this sketch left Grand Blanc, Genesee County, Michigan, where
his father then resided, in November 1850, for California. He came by the
Panama route, and took the Panama fever which nearly proved fatal. He was
unconscious for fourteen days on the voyage to San Francisco by the
Antelope, and on his arrival was sent to the hospital. When discharged he
was scarcely able to work, and did cooking for his board, and after ward was
paid $25 a month. Jut July, 1851, he came to Coloma in El Dorado County,
and was quite successful in mining, in which he has been engaged directly,
or as owner of mineral lands and water privileges, with little interruption
ever since. He conducted a hotel at Coloma about eighteen month in
1853-'54, which he afterward returned to others for seven or eight years,
and finally sold. In 1854 he bought a mining claim, and in 1855 went into
the mining and ditching business, with good success right along. But the
usual fortune of miners was near at hand. He engaged with others in running
a tunnel at Kentucky Flats, near Mount Gregory, in El Dorado County, with an
aggregate loss of $18,000, of which his share was about $2,500 and eighteen
months' labor. This was in 1856-'57.
He then went to Gold Hill and invested in a big bed-rock flume, which
scarcely returned any net gain. Meanwhile he was engaged in river mining in
the summer months from 1856 to 1860, which he quit in 1861. In the high
water of 1861-'62 his mining enterprises paid well. In 1862 he again went
to Coloma, where he bought a bar claim on the South Fork of the American
River, for $90, out of which he made $3,000 in five months. In the spring
of 1863 he came to Michigan Bar, on the Cosumnes, where he loaned money on
stock of the Eagle Ditch, the original cost of which, with the repairs,
amounting some years to $3,000, is estimated at over $60,000. He has been
owner of the property for several years, and leases water for mining and
irrigating purposes, besides supplying power for his grist-mill. He also
owns 200 acres of mineral land from which he gets varying returns. Jun 1871
and 1872 he prospected in Nevada, but without striking anything of value. He
was, however, let into some good enterprises, only to find that the sellers
were not the owners. Mr. James Jordan is a member of the Masonic order, and
was Senior Deacon in Nebraska Lodge, No.71, which used to meet in Michigan
Bar, but died out some years ago, when Mr. Jordan joined the lodge at Ione.
History of Solano County page 411
HAMMOND, E. A., a native of Simpson County, KY. born October 8, 1837. At the
age of one year he moved, with his uncle, David J. Clayton, to Jackson
county, Mo. (he being an orphan), where he lived until 15 years old, when he
emigrated, in company with his uncle, to California, crossing the plains
with ox teams, arriving in Suisun valley October, 1852. He worked at farming
in this county until 1856, when he went to Sonoma county, where he engaged
in the sheep business, remaining there one year, and thence to Napa county,
and engaged in the cattle trade, where he remained about two years. He then
returned to this county and set-tied in the upper end of Suisun valley,
where he farmed for one year, and then turned speculator, dealing in horses
and cattle, and working by the month until 1867.
Married Miss Catherine Ives, April 7, 1867. He then rented a farm, which he
occupied for about two years, in Napa County, and then purchased a farm in
Pope valley, Napa County, where he remained for four years. He then returned
to this county, and farmed the widow Clayton farm, in Suisun Valley, which
he conducted one year. After farming in different parts of this county and
Napa for a few years, he made a trip to Texas, where he remained about eight
months, when he returned to California, and, after working for a few months
as a farm hand, leased the ranch where he now resides, in Suisun Valley.
Mary F., Charles C. (deceased), James S., and William E. are the names of
their children.
History of San Joaquin County page 567
EUGENE DOUGLAS GRAHAM. -One of the most popular officials of San Joaquin
County who holds a most enviable and honorable record, is Eugene Douglas
Graham who was born on his father's ranch just north of the metropolis of
San Joaquin County, January 22, 1866, a son of Robert L. and Caroline R.
(Stokes) Graham, natives of Logan County, Ky., who lived to see their son so
greatly honored by his fellow citizens. The Graham family is of
Scotch-Irish lineage, the ancestors being early settlers of Virginia,
members of the family serving in the Revolutionary War. Grandfather Graham
removed from Virginia, making his way over the mountains to Logan County,
Ky., in 1808, where he reared his family. The Stokes family are traced back
to Germany. Great-grandfather Stokes was born in Stuttgart, Wurtemberg,
Germany and came to Richmond, Va., when a very young man. Here he entered
the Continental Army serving under Washington as a fifer in the
Revolutionary War, being wounded in battle, and he carried the bullet until
his death; he left a widow and three children, among them Grandfather
Stephen Stokes, who migrated to Logan County, Ky., and there he married and
was a pioneer in the development of the Blue Grass State.
Robert L. Graham left his native state with his family for California,
crossing the plains in 1852 in an emigrant train of wagons drawn by oxen
commanded by Captain Wood, men driving their loose cattle and stock with
them. As one of the pioneers Robert Graham preferred farming to mining and
located on a ranch near Lodi, where he followed agriculture all his life.
The mother passed away on the home place September 15, 1915, and then the
father lived with our subject but did not survive his life companion, for he
passed away November 17, of the same year.
This worthy couple had four children: Eugene D., the subject of this review;
Robert L., a successful druggist in Lodi, died suddenly of heart failure
while on a trip in the Yosemite Valley June 2, 1922; Surelda, Mrs. S. H.
Hale of Amador County; Della B., the wife of Otto Seegers, died in Stockton
in 1908. Eugenic D. grew up on his father's farm and from a boy assisted in
the work on the ranch learning to drive the big teams in the vast grain
fields of that day. However, his education was not neglected for he
attended the public school in Lodi and after completing the course he
supplemented it with a course at the old Stockton Business College, now
"Heald's," where he was duly graduated in 1885.
As early as the age of thirteen he started to make his own living, his first
employment being assistant postmaster at Lodi, a very responsible task for a
youth of his age, hint he early showed that thoroughness to make the details
of anything he undertook and soon developed into a painstaking and efficient
assistant, so much so that he was continued in the position until he was
twenty with the exception of the time he finished school and also the time
required for his business course. In 1886 he again took up farming, first
on his father's ranch and then grain farming on his own account, and for the
purpose raised a ranch north of Stockton.
Soon after thus he chose his life companion, the marriage ceremony being
performed at Modesto September 5, 1888, uniting him with Miss Frances B.
Mann, who was born in Iowa, a daughter of D. L. and Elizabeth J.
(Sutherland) Mann, also natives of the Hawkeye State. Her father served in
the Civil War and afterwards was a locomotive engineer. Bringing his family
to California by 1869, when the daughter, Frances, was a babe in arms. Mr.
Mann engaged in farming near Dixon, Solano County, for some years and they
came to Modesto, Stanislaus County, where he farmed until he retired and
moved to Stockton and there he and his wife died in January, 1919, their
deaths occurring two weeks apart.
After his marriage Eugenie Graham continued farming until January 1895, when
he was appointed deputy county clerk under Otto Grunsky, serving for five
years. When he resigned to again engage in grain farming on a ranch near
Lodi. In 1902 he was nominated on the Republican ticket as a candidate for
county clerk and was elected in the fall of that year by a majority of 1,000
out of 8,000 votes cast, taking the oath of office in January 1903. He has
since then served uninterrupted, being re-elected every four years without
opposition, an unprecedented record in the state of California and
undoubtedly the longest continuous service in the state as county clerk.
When he took office in 1903 the office was conducted in one room with the
aid of four deputies. The gradual increase of the business of the office
now requires four rooms and ten deputies, and the county's registration,
increased from 8,000 to over 30,000. However, it has been Mr. Graham's
policy to always keep the expenses of the office down to a minimum in the
matter of assistants as well as in the securing of supplies. He has been a
close student of the election, laws and his many years' experience makes him
an, authority on ballots and balloting, his advice being frequently sought
by professional as well as laymen, Mr. Graham's watchword is economy and
efficiency, and taxpayers are unanimous in their praise of the conduct of
the office and of the universal courtesy accorded all who have business in
his department. During the World War Mr. Graham served as secretary of the
county exemption board and for a time was a member of the County Council of
Defense. He has always manifested a keen interest in farming, and owns a
forty-acre ranch near Lodi which he is planning to develop to orchard and
vineyard.
Mr. and Mrs. Eugene D. Graham have been blessed with three sons: R.
Ellsworth is deputy county clerk of Department No. 2, San Joaquin County;
Lloyd L. is engaged in the grocery business in his home city, and Dr. E.
Myrle Graham. A graduate of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of San
Francisco is practicing his profession in Stockton. He was in the medical
division of the U. S. Navy, serving overseas on the Hospital Ship, "Mercy."
Mr. Graham is prominent in fraternal circles, being a member of Truth Lodge
No. 55, I. 0.0. F., Stockton Lodge No.218, B. P.O. E., Stockton Parlor No.7,
N. S. G. W., the Woodmen of the World and the Loyal Order of Moose. He is
deeply zealous for the future greatness of his county, and never allows an
opportunity to pass to boost for and extol the great natural resources of
this wonderfully rich and productive region, and he is ever ready to give of
his time and means to aid in movements that have for their aim its
development.
History of Tulare & Kings County page 389
HUGH L. HAMILTON
One of the sturdy characters in the business life of Exeter is Hugh L.
Hamilton, a blacksmith there. Born in 1861, in Mississippi County, Ark., he
was a son of Andrew Hamilton, a native of Ireland. His mother died when he
was three years old and he was only in his eighth year when his father
passed away. About a year after his second bereavement he went with his
grandfather and the latter's family to Missouri, where be remained three
years. In 1872 he was brought to Tulare County, Cal., and his education,
begun in Missouri, was continued in the public schools here. He was taken
into the family of his uncle, Hugh Hamilton, for whom he was named. In his
early life he worked at stock-raising and later for a considerable time gave
his attention to both that and grain farming, meanwhile learning the
blacksmith's trade and devoting himself to it as occasion offered.
Eventually he turned his attention entirely to blacksmithing, and his shop
in Exeter is one of the leading concerns of its kind in that part of the
county.
When Mr. Hamilton came to Tulare County there were few settlers in the
vicinity of Exeter and the whole country round about was new and
undeveloped. Stock~raising and grain-growing were the principal interests
for many years. His uncle had one of the big stock ranches of the time and
locality, and he gave his nephew a fair start in life.
At one time Mr. Hamilton owned five hundred and ninety acres of land and did
well as a farmer, hut his inclination made him a follower of his chosen
trade.
In 1884 Mr. Hamilton united his fortunes with those of Miss Mildred Ferril,
a native of Missouri, who bore him six children, five of whom are living.
She died in 1895, and in 1897 he married Ida May Butts, a native of
California. By his second marriage he has had two children, one of whom is
deceased. The other, Harvey W. Hamilton, is a student in the Exeter high
school. In his political affiliations Mr. Hamilton is a Democrat. He is
identified with the Knights of Pythias and the Woodmen of the World and is a
loyal citizen, for no worthy interest of the community is without his
encouragement.
History of San Joaquin County page 983
WILLIAM R. MOLL.-A successful businessman of Stockton, whose business was
begun in a small way and by diligent and intelligent effort has become a
profitable venture, is William R. Moll, the proprietor of the squab farm at
1540 South Aurora Street, where he has about 4,000 birds. He is a native
son of San Joaquin County, his birth occur-ring at Atlanta on February 6,
1879, a son of Joseph and Margaret (Bedford) Moll, natives of New York and
Iowa, respectively. Joseph Moll settled in California in 1875 and began
farming in Atlanta, San Joaquin County; later he removed to Eugene,
Stanislaus County, where he farmed until he retired. His wife passed away in
1917 and he is still living in Stockton at the age of eighty years. William
R. Moll received his education at the Lone Tree district school, and at
seventeen years of age started out for himself; he became a steam engineer
on dredges in the Bay region; then he worked two years at Blue Lakes, Alpine
County, running a hoist for the Standard Electric Company. Returning then to
Stockton, he opened a cigar store on California Street, which he operated
for ten years; during this time he had become interested in pigeon raising,
and his business grew to such proportions, that his quarters became too
small, so he moved his pigeon farm to 1559 South Hunter Street.
In three years' time it also became inadequate for his needs on account of
his rapidly growing business. Wishing to devote all of his time to pigeon
raising he sold his cigar business and about 1914 purchased his present
property, consisting of three lots on South Aurora Street, where he built
suitable buildings for pigeon raising and also rebuilt the house on the
place into a modern residence. He is equipped to handle 5,000 birds at one
time, which is a source of good income; his birds have taken first prize not
only at local fairs but also at different county fairs where he has made an
exhibit. He is breeding the birds for excellency and size so as to command
the highest price in the market. He ships squabs principally to Chicago and
New York City. Mr. Moll was the first individual in California to ship
dressed squabs to Eastern points, his object being to obtain higher prices.
In this he was successful as his returns were doubled. Others in his line
heard of it and came to him for advice in shipping. He is today the largest
squab breeder in Central California.
In August 1905, in San Francisco, Mr. Moll was united in marriage with Miss
Ora E. Stroughtenburgh, a native of Stockton the daughter of John and Mary
(Davis) Stoughtenburgh, born in Woodland, Cal. and Concord, Iowa
respectively. The mother died in Stockton, and the father now resides in
Sacramento, Mr. and Mrs. Moll are the parents of one son, Irving. Mr. Moll
has been a member of the Stockton Red Men for about twenty years.
Bay of San Francisco page 654
CHARLES CASASSA is a member of the firm of Paulucci & Casassa, successors to
L. Arata & Co., commission merchants and produce dealers, 515 and 517 Davis
street, San Francisco. He was born in the province of Cicagna, Italy,
September 19, 1847. His parents were Francisco and Maria (Gnecco) Casassa,
both of whom were natives also of Italy, and had eight children, Charles
being the eighth. The father died in 1855; the mother is still living, and
a resident of San Francisco. They are of a long-lived and prolific race.
The mother, now aged eighty-four years, is hale and hearty.
Mr. Casassa accompanied his parents to Boston, Massachusetts, when seven
years of age, and there young Charles received his education under the
supervision of a private instructor, and later learned the trade of
painting. He came to California via Panama, on the steamers Eastern Queen
and Golden Age, in 1867, and engaged in selling vegetables for fifteen
years. He became a partner in his present business in 1884, which has since
progressed and flourished, and now extends far into the interior of the
State.
Mr. Casassa was married, in San Francisco, in 1870, to Miss Kate Agnes
McQuade, a native of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and they have five
children, all of whom are living, namely: Maria, Maggie, Charles, Katie and
Rosa.
Politically Mr. Casassa is a Republican, taking an active part in local
matters. He belongs to Bernal Lodge, No.19, A. O. U. W., of San Francisco.
Illustrated History of Yolo County CA (oversize book) page 104
See, D. F. (Dock Forsha), a native of Montogomery county, Missouri, born 1844; came
overland to California in 1853, and settled in Yolo county in 1857, where he
is engaged in stock raising and owns 166 acres of land that produces well.
Postoffice address, Winters.
Illustrated History of Yolo County CA (oversize book) page 104
Sieber, Christ., born, January, 1847, in Wertemberg, Germany; came to
California in 1867, and located in Woodland the next year, where he is
engaged in the saloon and bakery business. In 1878 he was elected a member
of the town council, and Treasurer of time town of Woodland amid still holds
those positions. He was married in 1874 to Miss Fredrieka Buob, in
Woodland, by Rev. Mr. Banfield. Their children are Christopher and Freida,
aged one and three years.
Illustrated History of Yolo County CA (oversize book) page 104
Schuerley, John K., proprietor of Yolo Brewery, Woodland, a native of
Wertemberg, Germany, born June, 1832. In 1866, he came to California, via
Isthmus, from Cincinnati, Ohio, and settled in Yolo county, where be is
engaged in brewing, distilling amid farming. He owns 230 acres of valuable
land, just outside the limits of the town of Woodland, and was a member of
time first Board of Trustees of that town.
Illustrated History of Yolo County CA (oversize book) page 104
Still, Stephen J., a native of Sacramento, California born October 22nd,
1856; was brought to Yolo county by his parents when two months old. He has
since lived in Woodland, where he has been educated, and owns three acres of
land. His present occupation is book-keeping.
Prominent figure in his day was Angus M. Clark, a Millertonite that helped make county and city history. He died December 2, 1907. He was a Mason, a Knight Templar and Shriner and a charter member of Fresno's first Masonic lodge and its first master. He came to California at the age of nineteen during the gold excitement in 1850 and after following mining for seventeen years in various parts of the state came to Fresno in 1867 and worked in the copper mine at Buchanan, early enterprise of great promise.
He abandoned mining work when in 1873 he was elected county clerk and recorder, assuming the duties of the office in March at Millerton. In the fall the county seat was removed to Fresno and to Mr. Clark as the custodian of the public archives fell the task of removing the records to the new town on the plains, and he assisted at the laying of the cornerstone of the second county courthouse. He held the office for eleven years and in 1885 its business had so increased that the work of the office was separated and he resigned. He was elected to the state legislature this same year. Other political activities included two terms as district school trustee and two or three terms as city recorder before there was a police judge under a charter.
Samuel J.; Annie H., wife of R. L. Rutherford; George, deceased; John J.:
Henry M.; Mary L. and Nadine Belle: the latter two, together with Samuel J.,
are still at home. The family worship at the Malaga Baptist Church. Mr. Wash
united with the Baptist Church in 1857. His political preference is given to
the Democratic party, and he is a member of the Masonic fraternity, having
been made a Mason in Knox county, Mo.
Sylvester L. PLASKETT died in Yuba county at age 63 on Sep 12 1948. There is
an obituary in the Sacramento Bee on 16 Sep 1948 page 12 col 6.
Francis M. PLASKETT married Lena B. FULLER Feb 3 1885 in San Jose and there
is a write-up in the CALL Feb 10 1885 3-7.
Euphena BRAMLET died in Los Angeles age 73 on Oct 12 1929.
History of South Coast Counties - page 1087
dob Feburary 24, 1872
dod October 2, 1956
father Henry Spargur born Ohio
mother Emma Jensen born Indiana
spouse Widower
burial Alta Mesa Cemetery.